Harry the Crow
by ScarletEyce
Summary: When Harry meets Reborn, it sets events in place that would forever change the world. Nothing would stay the same, not if they have anything to say about it. And if they happen to pick some people up along the way... well, that's just how these things go. Rated T for swearing.
1. Harry the Crow Act I Part I

**A/n: Hello, my lovely Dragons! This story was moved from Of Flames and Wizards, and is the first one to become a full story. Only thing you should know before you read is that Renato is Reborn before he became Reborn. Everyones gotta start somewhere, right?**

 **Special thanks to MisteriosaSaky for giving me the idea for this.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own them.**

 **Harry the Crow**

Harry fought the darkness muddling his brain. He could feel his Crow retreating slowly so as not to make the return too sudden. When he finally had total control, he opened his eyes. He was perched on the branch of an old tree, one of those giant ones that it would take at least five people to span the width.

"There he is! Don't let him get away!"

"The little shit stole our money! Get him!"

He looked toward the source of the shouts, his eyes in crow form far better than they were in his human form (after all, who ever heard of crow wearing glasses?). There was a young child who appeared to be around the age of six or seven. He was running as if the devil himself was on his heels, a brown sack clutched in his hand.

Harry immediately liked him. Not many people had the audacity to steal from a gang of thugs that were far bigger than themselves. And judging by the look in the boy's eyes (mischievous), they would get along famously. Seeing as how the thugs were walking a bit, he could safely assume that the boy had done far more than just steal. He loved a good prank, and in the spirit of keeping them alive, he would help the boy.

He turned to the snake curled up beside him and hissed, _"Help the boy. I like the look in his eyes, and being the Master of Death is boring."_

The snake gave him an unimpressed look as it answered, " _You want us to help him because you're bored?"_ It gave a sigh of epic proportions and turned, " _well, I suppose we have nothing better to do."_ It slithered down the tree, hissing as it went.

Harry couldn't recall the last time he had spoken a human language (he had known quite a few when he left), but he was quite sure that he could speak Italian at least fairly well, if not completely fluent. After all, he had understood the thugs just fine. He flew down to the boy, who was cornered against a tree, and whispered in his ear, "I like the look in your eyes, and I am a firm believer in pranks on everyone. But, before I help you, do tell why you thought stealing was a good idea?"

The boy visibly started when he landed on his shoulder, and he paled even further when he spoke. Was a talking crow really that strange? His snake friends didn't seem to think so, but then, they had seen much stranger things. The boy turned toward him and said with a whispery voice, "Who are you? Why can you talk? I'm not going insane, am I?"

"No, you are not going insane. I am a magic crow that has seen everything in this land." Harry deliberately made himself as annoying as possible. "And look, see those snakes biting the thugs? I can talk to them." The boy was white as a ghost by this point, but he still had a fire in his eyes. He would do. "Also, please answer the question, before I drive you mad."

He steeled himself, "I'm good at stealing, and I need money, but no one will give a job to a six year old. And Mom is sick, so I need the money for pain medication." He was near crying at this point, but he continued, "and Dad left, said we were worthless, but some people are willing to hire an anonymous thief for jobs, so thats why. Do you need anything else?!"

Harry stared into the boy's eyes, checking to see if the child was lying. To his surprise, the child had a natural barrier around his mind, one made of yellow flames that felt like the sun. Thankfully, the barrier was still undeveloped, and he could get past it without harming the child. Everything he had said was true. He took the chance and peered into the boy's memories.

Turned out the kid's father was verbally abusive, and his mom worked as a prostitute. The boy had never had a full meal, though he was still the correct size for his age. Harry applauded the child's mother for doing as well as she did in such a bad situation. As far as he could see, the boy had grown up mostly off the streets, though his mother had taught him how to fight, as well as how to survive if he did end up out there.

"I like you. I'm going to stay with you, and help you become the best you can be." The kid looked shocked that the strange talking crow would help him. Really, it wasn't like he was that strange. Was he? _Don't go into an existential crisis, you idiot. Focus, Harry,_ he berated himself. "Hey, kid. What's your name?"

"Renato Sinclair. What-What's your name?" Renato looked absolutely terrified of asking him a question.

"Harry the Crow. Please stop being so scared of me. Am I really that strange?"

"Hey, you were the one saying you were going to make me go mad! Of course I would be scared!"

"But I'm a cute and soft bird! How could you be scared of me?" Harry gave his best puppy eyes. Renato was unimpressed. Apparently, crows were not cute enough for puppy eyes. He cleared his throat and put on his serious face, "Ahem. From now on, we are partners. This means that I will help you with your jobs and you will let me stay with you. I will be improving your physical condition as well. We are equals in this relationship, unless I am training you. Acceptable?"

"That makes sense. I don't think that I could stand being with someone who would treat me with kid gloves."

"Good. We will start tomorrow by visiting the Thieves Guild. Meet me in front of the building. I assume you know where it is?" Harry waited for a nod before continuing, "Good. After we finish there, we will be training. Have you ever accidentally used yellow flames before?"

"Yeah, but I can't control them very well. I mean, I can kinda use them to heal myself, but other than that they don't do anything."

"Alright, then we will spend some time experimenting with them and improving your control. Is there anything you wish to ask me before I go?"

Ebony eyes lit up, and Renato opened his mouth almost immediately. "Why can you talk?"

"I used to be human, you know."

Line-Break

A week and tons of training later, Renato and Harry had their first job. Their first job as a team that is. They were to steal a painting from a recently opened art gallery. Most of what the gallery had was trash, but there was one painting that the boss had taken a shine to, leading to the job they were on now. For now, they were observing. Harry had volunteered to be the watcher, seeing as how a crow standing at a window was not strange at all.

In the time he had alone, Renato thought about his new teacher/partner. It had taken a few days before he had relaxed around the strange bird, but when Harry and his snakes protected him again, he decided that they were trustworthy. Sure, Harry's training had been hell, but he could feel himself getting stronger. It got a little bit easier every day.

 _To be honest_ , Renato thought, _I really like Harry. He's so warm, and when I get scared at night, he lets me hug him._ One day, Harry had told him he could change size. Renato had immediately demanded that Harry let Renato ride on his back. It had been the best night of his life.

Renato was excited for this job, it was the first real one he had gone on. The ones before had all been the kind he had given himself, where he saw a group of thugs picking on someone and decided to get revenge. As soon as Harry got back with the details, he was ready to start planning.

A few hours later found them sitting in the park where they met, discussing plans. According to Harry, the detail gathering normally took longer, but he had taken a mental picture of the guard schedules and patterns when the manager pulled them out to check something. So, with that information in hand, they made a plan.

Harry would distract the guards by mimicking various suspicious sounds while Renato would sneak in with the case for the painting. Harry would use his hacking skills (Renato really wanted to know how a bird did that, but he was scared to ask) to break into the security system and put the cameras on a loop, and then he would meet Renato by one of the windows. From there, they would steal the painting and sneak out the same window Renato had used to let Harry in.

When they put the plan into action, it went off without a hitch, and the next day they turned it in and received their money. Over the next several years, they completed all their jobs without getting caught, though the jobs didn't always go perfectly. They made a name for themselves, and the stronger Renato got, the more he and Harry felt like equals.

The first time he had seen Harry's human form was after his first job as a hitman. He had managed to hold himself together throughout the whole job, and when it was finally over and he was back in his own home, he had let himself break down. He cried, great gasping sobs that wracked his lean frame. When Harry realized that just being there wasn't enough, he decided to risk it. He shifted forms and gave Renato the best thing he could. A hug and unconditional acceptance.

It was the same thing Ron and Hermione had given him when he found out he couldn't age anymore. Sometimes, words only made things worse. This was one of those times. And when he felt Renato relax against him and fall asleep, he knew he had done the right thing. Later, Renato would question him, would demand to know why he hadn't shown him his human form before, but for now, he was staying right here.


	2. Harry the Crow Act I Part II

**A/n: Hello, my lovely Dragons! I'm assuming that you are here because you like it, so please enjoy. This chapter ended up a little different than I had originally planned. It was supposed to be funny, damnit! Instead, it's... this. Whatever 'this' is.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own either story, I just borrow the worlds to play in. I make no profit off of this.**

Renato walked up the stairs leading to the massive mansion that would be his home for the next few weeks, according to the strange letter he got. Apparently he was the World's Greatest Hitman. Harry, who was perched on his shoulder with Leon, had told him that if he let it get to his head, there would be some very creative things coming his way.

He knocked on the heavy wood door. A few seconds later, the door creaked open, revealing a woman with a large hat and a tattoo under her eye. "You must be Luce, it's a pleasure to meet you, fair lady." He turned his charm on, and watched the woman's face turn red. A black feathered wing hit his head with surprising force.

"Stop that! What have I told you about flirting with everything that moves? You even do it to me!"

"You are very attractive, of course I flirt with you. And what's wrong with being polite to a woman?"

"It would be polite if you didn't do the thing with your charm! Otherwise you just seem like a man-whore!" The crow sobbed, "What happened to the sweet, innocent kid I used to know?"

Luce watched as they bantered (did the man really flirt with the crow? Did he have some kind of... 'animal magnetism?' Best to just ignore it for now), seeming more like children than anything. She should probably interrupt, because she got the feeling that if she didn't, they would be here a while. And... she really wanted to know why the crow could talk. She cleared her throat, "Ahem. Perhaps you would like to come inside and have a snack?"

They turned to her with identical sheepish expressions. The crow crossed one wing over his chest and leaned forward in a mock bow. "My apologies, lady, for this idiot," he gestured to the man with a black-tinted-green wing, "I'm still trying to teach him proper manners."

The strange crow had an English accent, with a faint hint of a Scottish brogue. Overall, it was quite pleasing to listen to. And he was a talking crow, which was far stranger than just being a crow that stayed with a Flame user. A crow following him could be passed off as a side effect of long term Flame exposure, but talking crow?

That... she had no explanation for that. She should have, but whenever she tried to see the future, something was always fuzzy and blurred, as something was preventing her from seeing it. And that something was always with the fedora wearing man in front of her. It had to be the crow. It was the only thing that could cause the disturbance, but it still didn't make any sense.

"It is perfectly alright, he meant no harm. I'm sure you'll succeed some day." They followed her as she lead the way to the dining room. They were the first ones there, so at the moment the giant mansion seemed empty. That would, hopefully, fix itself as more people arrived over the course of the next week. Luce glanced at the clock hanging in above the door. Nearly lunch-time, she thought, best to start the food now. "Would you like to sit down while I make lunch?"

"If you don't mind," they said in unison, then turned to glare at each other. The crow had an impressive array of facial expressions for a crow. She laughed and went to make the sandwiches and start the roast for dinner.

When she came back, the crow had moved off the man's shoulder and onto his arm, and they appeared to be having a staring contest. Or they would, if they were looking at each other. She chuckled as she set the plates of sandwiches down on the dark-wood table, and popped the man's snore-bubble. He didn't give any sign that he had been asleep, not even the slightest jerk, when he woke up.

He began eating the sandwiches with a sniff and a muttered "This smells good." The crow did the same thing when he waved a sandwich under it's nose. They easily cleaned the plate, and then the man looked up as if he forgot something and only just now remembered.

"The sandwiches were divine, lady, thank you. I just realized, but we haven't introduced ourselves, have we? You may call me Reborn, and this is my partner Corvo. Take good care of us, Lady Luce."

And with that, Luce realized that the timeline was out of her hands. She could only pray that the future went down the right path.

(Though, she still wasn't sure how the crow did half the things it did. It somehow picked things up with its wings and ate like a human would, it had expressions, it talked, and it had manners! If even a crow could have manners, why couldn't everyone else?)

Line-Break

The giant crow glided over the forest surrounding the mansion, a fedora wearing man perched on it's back. Skull gave a sad smile, feelings of nostalgia and sadness slamming into him at full force. It reminded him of the stories his mother used to tell him before he went to bed. Stories of fantastic beasts and epic wars, men riding on beasts and men turning into beasts.

An ache grew in his chest as he remembered getting the news of his mother's death. She had been the only one he had left, he didn't consider his father a real parent, the bastard. But his mother would have wanted him to be happy, so Skull did his best, and although he wasn't fine now, he would be fine. And yet, no matter how much he told himself that... the ache grew. (His mother's death triggered the first time he had ever seen the pretty purple flames.)

He watched as the crow landed in front of him, and he watched as the man (Reborn, his mind supplied) hopped off, and he watched as the crow wrapped it's wings around itself and shrunk into a more manageable size. He watched as the duo moved towards him, his mask stripped from sadness and pain. The crow took one look at his face, and understanding flashed in it's eyes as it flew over an perched on his shoulder.

"Skull... you don't have to be strong in front of me." The crow watched as his eyes flicked over to Reborn, "And don't worry about him. He understands. No one will know. How long have you been hiding in that mask of yours?"

A tear slipped out of watery purple eyes, "What mask?" He gave a hollow, broken laugh that made them wince. He could vividly remember when his father beat him and his mother (that was how she died), remember all the times that he went to the circus to escape, until finally it became his home. "I'm doing just fine." He was. He was doing just fine. He didn't need a shoulder to cry on. He was... just fine. (Right?)

The crow's eyes hardened, and it stared at him for a long moment. "Reborn, go inside. We will be back later, but for now... I think we need to have a talk, Skull."

No, no, no, no no no no. There would be no talking, not to the crow that seemed to see through every mask he made. He started to move away, but he froze when the crow turned to him and said, "Come here. I'm taking you on a flight. It's high time you got some of that out of your system."

He had always dreamed of flying, of being free. It was why he loved motorcycles so much. They were the closest he could get to that sense of being free. And now, this talking crow was offering him what he always wanted. Even as broken as he was, he realized that he wanted this so much more than he wanted to run away.

So when the crow grew big again and offered it's back to him, he accepted. He climbed up the crow until he was perched in the middle of it's back. Once the crow was sure he was comfortable, it jumped and flapped it's wings, gaining altitude rapidly. Skull watched the ground fall away with a sense of wonder and awe that he hadn't felt since he was a little boy discovering stories of princess', dragons, and knights while he sat on his mother's lap.

And then, in the sky where no-one could see them, he fell apart. He cried his heart out into the feathers of this strange crow, feeling a strange sense of relief at releasing all the built up tension. All the pieces he had been desperately holding together fell apart. And after he was done, he was emotionally and physically exhausted. They stayed up there for hours with nothing but the wind and whimsy guiding their way.

Nothing was said on that particular flight, but in the fragile silence, two things happened. A broken man fell apart, and, with quiet understanding supporting him, began to put himself back together, and a bond formed between two people who had been betrayed by the people they should have been able to trust.

Line-Break

Fon liked the talking crow. It was very intelligent, and made a very good companion. It also seemed to sense his need for time to calm his explosive temper, something that was rarely found in the mansion while all of them were there, especially after Skull came back one day after being missing for hours. The crow would simply give him a 'look' and fly to the roof. They would sit in there, just watching the world around them (he enjoyed listening to the crow chatter about nothing). After Fon had cooled off sufficiently, they would go back down and things would go back to normal.

So now, staring at the crow that was caught in some thorny bushes, maybe it was his turn to help. He reached down and carefully began extracting the sharp thorns from the delicate skin and feathers of the talking crow. It made no sound, not even when he got to the bigger thorns that were embedded in his skin rather deep. He pulled one from the corner of the crow's mouth, which had probably made talking painful, and was most likely the reason that it hadn't been hollering for help.

"What were you doing, getting caught in a bush like this?"

The crow looked sheepish for a moment, "Well... there were some yummy looking berries in it... and I tried getting to one, but I got caught. And then I started panicking, and the thorns got deeper." The crow's (why couldn't he remember it's name?) expression turned sad, "And then, when I stopped moving, I thought that no-one would come for me..." The crow perked up, "But then you came! And I knew it would be okay, cause you're my friend!"

How long had it been since he had heard such a simple declaration of friendship? Not even his parents had done something 'just because'. He was happy that the crow (Colvo? Covro? Corvo? Corvo!) considered him it's friend. He carefully lifted it out of the bush after he had finished pulling the thorns out. The places there had been thorns were bloody, and it was clear that there was no way Corvo was flying again that day. Fon used some water from his canteen to clean the wounds, as well as ripping part of his shirt off to bind them.

"Hey, Fon, do you know where we are? Because I kinda got lost..." Corvo looked rather downtrodden, it's expression still etched with pain. Unfortunately, Fon did not know where they were either. He was also lost, and he said as much. Corvo just nodded and suggested that they pick a random direction and go with it. Fon agree, and off they went, Corvo riding on Fon's shoulder.

Things were going fine until Fon stepped on a sinkhole, the ground opening wide beneath him. He grabbed for solid ground, missed, and resigned himself to falling. Except that he wasn't falling, because there were claws gripping his shoulders, tugging him upwards. The claws let him go as soon as they were over solid land.

He landed on his feet and heard a whooshing sound beside him. He turned and saw a much larger Corvo standing there, panting from exertion, bandages ripped and wings bleeding freely. Considering that blood often attracted predators, Fon really wasn't surprised when a large ocelot tried attacking Corvo. The bird was too exhausted too move, and so Fon stepped in took the cat out in one fell swoop.

Corvo looked so relieved that he wasn't going to get eaten yet. The bird shuddered in pain as he collapsed into himself and shrunk. "I saw above the tree-line for a moment, and the mansion is that way."

Fon nodded and picked the tired crow up. There would be plenty of time for talking later. For now, he needed to get Corvo back to the mansion.

And as Fon walked, two things happened. Corvo revealed that he trusted Fon implicitly by falling asleep in his arms, and a bond formed between two people who knew what it was like to need to contain their explosive tempers.

Line-Break

Reborn, Fon, and Skull sat in a semicircle in front of him. Harry had brought them to his favorite clearing so he could explain a few things. "Now, I'm going to assume that by now you all realize that you are my Guardians, and I am your Sky." They nodded, "What you don't know is that this isn't… hmmm… how to put it…

"I suppose you could say this isn't 'me.' This isn't my real form. In fact, it's been so long since I've spent much time as 'me' that I don't even remember what I look like."

Reborn grinned mischievously, "So does this mean I finally get to _truly_ see your elusive human form?"

"Human form?" Fon questioned, "How does that work? Where do your clothes go? How does the mass conversion work?"

"Uh...I don't know," Harry shrugged. "It's magic!" He whispered, "It just works, and no one knows why!" He proceeded to demonstrate by jumping off the low branch he was using as a perch, and shifting back into a human. His feathers pulled into his skin, his wings changed into his arms, his beak flattened to be part of his face.

When it finished, he stood their looking very majestic, and only vaguely amused by their awe. It lasted for all of a moment, because due to not having spent much time as a human, he had forgotten how human bodies work.

This resulted in him falling over, much to the amusement of his Guardians. Reborn helped him sit up, supporting him when he accidentally leaned over too much. Skull moved to Harry's other side, sandwiching him so that he wouldn't fall over. Again.

"Hey, you try spending a long time as a crow, and see how well you do as a human after that. Only then will I allow you to make judgements on my apparent disabilities." Harry turned his nose up in a fake imitation of a snobby rich kid.

Skull nudged his side with an elbow, laughing quietly as he said, "Okay, okay. But...I have to wonder, why were you a crow for so long?"

Harry froze for a second, and then visibly forced himself to relax, "Ah, there were some...circumstances that made being myself rather uncomfortable for a while. It was just easier to be a crow."

Harry sighed, and then grinned, "On another note, I have more possibly mind-breaking and life changing news! Guess what?"

"What." Reborn said, his voice as flat as it could possibly be.

Harry leaned forward, raised his hands like someone who was about to tell the biggest secret ever, and whispered "I'm a wizard."

Reborn raised an eyebrow and exchanged glances with Skull and Fon. "Was that supposed to surprise us? Considering that you can turn into a talking crow, I would presume that the logical conclusion, barring any other explanation, is magic. People with magic should be called something, and wizards and witches are the fairly obvious choice."

"There you go again, ruining my surprises with _logic,_ " He hissed the word with venom. "Logic does not exist to me. When I can make things float with nothing more than some words and a pointy stick, logic loses meaning."

"So you say. And yet, I managed to come to the conclusion that magic was real with your horrid logic."

"That doesn't count. You are not applying the logic to magic, you are coming to realize magic through logic. Which still doesn't make sense."

"Ahem." Fon cleared his throat, hoping to derail the argument before it went any further. Plus, there was also the matter of… "How does you having magic affect the bond between us? Since we are bound to you, it is fairly obvious that none of us have any previous experience in this matter. And considering that you are the one with magic, you are hopefully better informed about such things."

Harry tilted his head, "I'm… actually not sure. Though that could be something that would be very interesting to look into. It makes me wonder how many purebloods knew about about Flames, even if they had another name for it. You know, I bet you would've gotten along with my friend Hermione really well."

"Pureblood?" Skull asked, "What's a pureblood?"

"Hmmm… Think of it like new companies and old companies. The old companies are the purebloods. They all know each other and are very resistant to new companies popping up. The new companies are the muggleborns. They know almost nothing about the wizarding world when they start, and they are picked on by the purebloods."

"Muggleborns?"

"Muggles are people without magic. I'm not sure what they would classify people with Flames as. Muggleborns are witches or wizards who are born to a completely muggle family. They are also sometimes called mudbloods, mostly by the purebloods who are very against anything to do with muggles."

"Halfbloods are in the middle. They aren't unknown, and they don't know nothing, but they also aren't treated as well as the purebloods. Halfbloods are when a pureblood and a muggleborn have children.

"Purebloods are the like the old companies that know exactly what they're doing and don't want anyone to tell them otherwise. They are normally quite rich, they are from two people who can trace their family back generations, and so on.

"To be honest, even if the comparison isn't quite accurate, the wizarding world isn't all that different from the muggle world. It has it's ups - the pureblood society is actually quite fascinating when they aren't being ridiculously snobby - it has it's downs - there have been far too many bad situations centered around blood purity - and it has its ok moments."

Harry shook his head and sighed, a slight smile playing on his lips, "And even though it may be full of prejudice, I have to admit that some of my best memories were made there." He frowned, "And some of my worst. But that's a story for another time. Any questions?"

"I have one!" Skull raised his hand, "Do all your body parts work as a crow? All of them?"

There was a stunned silence as Harry stared at his Cloud in bewilderment. A few seconds later, Harry couldn't help but break out into chuckles. Leave it to Skull to lighten the mood.

"That, Skull, is also a question for another day."

 **A/n: This last scene has been completely rewritten, so for returning readers, that's why it's different.**


	3. Harry the Crow Act I Part III

**A/n: Hello, my lovely Dragons! For those of you who came here form OFW, this is a New Chapter. I wanted to have this done before I made HTC a separate story, otherwise why read it again? Please enjoy, and I hope you like.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own.**

 **Harry the Crow Part III**

Harry stared at the graves in front of him. He visited every year, but the recent conversation had brought unpleasant memories to the surface. He had needed to come here again. He had made sure his Guardians knew that he was taking the week off. He planned to spend some time wandering about London, visiting various places. Maybe he would go the graves of some of his friends.

Someone stepped out of the shadows, startling him. He hadn't felt their presence at all. The person gave a sob, "Harry... I found you..." The voice was strangely familiar. In fact, it sounded almost exactly like what he imagined a grown up Hermione would sound like.

"Hermione? Is that you?"

She nodded frantically. "Yeah, yeah, it's me. It's so good to see you again, Harry." She gave a fragile grin, so like the young woman he remembered leaving. She looked absolutely amazing. Especially since she was supposed to be getting old. But... some part of him still doubted her. Well, there was a way to check.

"What is Voldemort's real name? And what did I fight in the second year of Hogwarts? What is my animagus form?" His tone was harsh, but it only seemed to reassure her that it was him.

"Tom Marvolo Riddle, a basilisk, and a crow." Her smile grew less brittle around the edges. "I see your still paranoid as ever. Constant vigilance, yeah?"

"Yeah. Hermione, why do you look so young? What happened after I left?"

"We died, Harry. But... you brought us back. Because we are your Guardians, and the Ministry shouldn't fuck with us." As she said that, four bonds snapped into place and filled a hole Harry didn't even know was there. He doubled over, gasping and gripping at his chest as he tried to sort through the feelings that weren't his. Even as he kneeled, Hermione continued, "The Ministry had us executed for refusing to cooperate with the law. We wouldn't answer any questions about you. We bound ourselves with oaths so that even Verita serum couldn't make us talk."

He looked up at that, and realized that this was what had made him retreat into himself. At first he thought it was himself, but this made too much sense. He stood up and walked to Hermione. She was crying, scared that he would turn her away even as her brain told her it was alright. He made a pass over her with his Flames, nearly growling when he saw the state they were in. They were tattered, barely holding together. If she hadn't found him today, even being bonded to the Master of Death wouldn't have saved her.

He tugged on the twin lightning bond, and two more stepped out, twins with hair that was red as fire. "They got to us first, and when they examined us and found our bond, they experimented on us. We died there, Harry." They hugged him, crying in relief as there Flames finally settled back into Harmony. "We missed you so much. We thought we were going insane. It hurt so much."

"I'm so glad you got free of the Wrackspurts, my Sky. It would have been a shame if you were still lost." Said his missing Mist as she joined the hug. It was so good to see all of them again.

"I hope you know I expect a far better explanation. You can't just walk up to me young as the day I left you and not expect questions."

Harry's snark generated laughs, and he took it as a good sign as he slowly coaxed the wayward Flames back into shape. It was akin to taking a thread and trying to weave something else out of it. If he made one mistake, it would show.

"Don't worry, everything shall be explained in due time, my boy." Said Fred, clearly imitating Dumbledore at his most infuriating.

"Yes, yes, no need to worry, just ignore the three-headed dog in the corridor. Nothing to worry about, move along." George added.

They all looked at each other for a moment, and then collapsed on the ground in a pile of laughter. It was so good to have a full complement of Guardians. He would have to introduce them at the first chance he got. Which would probably be after Luce was done with them. And who knew how long that could take.

Line-Break

Hours later, they were laying in the grass, gazing up at the darkening sky. "What did you mean when you said I brought you back?"

"Well, according to Death, we can't die, because if we do, you'll fall apart. And having the Master of Death fall apart would be bad." Said Hermione.

"Although, there were some pretty cool side effects to being brought back. Look!" George pulled his upper lip back in a snarl. He had fangs. Very large fangs. Very large vampire fangs. Is this what they meant by 'side effects'? "It's so cool! As long as we drink a glass of blood like once a month, we get to be vampires! And there aren't really any downsides."

"Yeah, we get to be your Guardians and be vampires, and the only downside is we can't age and we have to have a bit of blood?" Fred said as he and his brother shared a glance, "Worth it!"

Harry laughed, that empty feeling he had been running from gone. "All right, it's explanation time. Hermione, you probably know the most, so go ahead."

"Right... Well, it all started when you left. The Ministry wanted to know where you were, so they questioned everyone close to you. Me, Luna, the Weasleys, even Draco, just in case he had something to do with it. We didn't want them to know anything, so we swore oaths on Magic." She braced herself and continued, "When they realized that they weren't getting anything out of us, they ordered us Kissed on grounds of resisting an investigation and taking illegal oaths. All of it was bullshit.

"I'm not sure about them, but when I died, I was in King's Cross Station. Except... there was no-one there. No-one. Then this guy in a dark cloak walks up to me and says, 'I am Death. You are bonded to the one I call Master. Return to life as a True Vampire so that he does not collapse on himself.' Very creepy, that guy was.

"So I returned to life, snuck out of the morgue that I was in, and disappeared. When I heard news of other bodies doing the same, I found them and explained what I had found out about Flames. I was a lot calmer after that, it was like there was this river floating around my core that soothed me. It's incredible. We started figuring out how they worked, but at some point it started getting harder, and then there was only this need to find you. So we waited here, because you would probably come here.

"And that's everything. I think." Said Hermione. How did she say all that in one breath? Sure, she's a True Vampire now, but she still needs air, right? Harry sighed and shook his head.

"Guys, I have bad news," They leaned forward, worry on their faces, "the Potter luck may have rubbed off on you."

They sat still for a moment. Luna was the first one to break. She laughed, laughed until tears were streaming down her face, and they laughed with her, feeling the resonance in their souls. It was a good day to be alive.

Line-Break

Reborn was wary as they climbed the mountain. It was such an odd time for Luce to decide to do something like this. Why this spontaneous team building exercise? He exchanged a look with Skull and Fon. Something was going on, and he didn't like it.

When they got to the top of the mountain, instead of a peak like normal, there was a plateau. The farther they got, the less he liked this. The others seemed to share his sentiments. Lal Mirch was the first to speak, "Luce, what are we doing here? You haven't told us anything, other than that we have to gather here."

Luce looked up with a sad smile on her face, "This is what Fate has decreed happen. In order for the world to not fall apart, you must become Arcobaleno, the Strongest Seven." She made a motion with her hands. "For what it's worth, I am sorry for everything."

Blinding pain erupted in Reborn's body. He fell to his knees and clutched at the ground, pulling on the bond to his Sky as an escape. He struggled to breath, his whole being felt like it was being torn apart. From the screams coming from the rest, even Viper and Verde, they felt the same. His Sky was the only thing that kept him sane. It felt like he was shrinking, changing, like something was pulling on his Flames, sealing them away.

He gratefully slid into the offer of sweet darkness from his Sky. He had the feeling that when he woke up, things would be different. He was not looking forward to it.

 **A/n: So every chapter is gonna have a little short at the end with scenes that I really wanted to add that didn't fit in the story flow. Some are gonna be Crow Harry trolling people, and some are just gonna be fluffy or cute, or backstory. The first one is from Verde's POV.**

Verde stared at the impossibility in front of him. There was a large crow sitting on a chair and sipping tea between belting out old English Folk songs. His eyes twitched, and he just knew he was going to have a headache later. Reborn came in, sat down beside the crow, and joined him. Verde's eyes twitched again. Why? What did he ever do to deserve this? Sure, he may have tried to capture the crow to experiment on him, but he didn't deserve to be tortured like this, did he?

The crow, as if sensing his thoughts, turned to him and said in a sing-song tone, "I'll only stop pranking you if you apologize." So it was the crow behind all the bad things! The paint balls that would appear out of nowhere, his chair constantly getting pulled from underneath him, the stink bombs when he ate. All of it was him!

"Fine! I apologize, "he growled out. Getting rid of these pranks was far more important than his pride. He wasn't getting anything done like this. "Are you happy now?"

"Absolutely! In fact, I'll even tell you why I can talk," said The Bane Of His Existence. Verde leaned forward, more than a little interested. "It's..."–he leaned a little more,"–Magic!"

Verde face palmed, turned on his heel and walked away, ignoring the peels of laughter coming from behind him. He would avoid that crow like the plague. He no longer had any desire to do anything with it. His headache would only get ten times worse if he did.


	4. Harry the Crow Act I Part IV

**A/n: Hello, my lovely Dragons! Sorry this took so long. Life slapped me in the face. I'm fairly sure that this is the last chapter in Act I. After this is gonna be the start of cannon. I haven't read the manga, so I have to do a lot of research to figure out what I can change and what that will cause. But I hope you enjoy this, even if it took a bit.**

 **Thanks to everyone who reviewed! It helps!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own. *Flies into the sunset**

He was angry. Very, very angry. He had felt the pain coming down the Guardian bond to Skull, Fon, and Reborn. Something had held them to consciousness, or would have held them if he hadn't offered sanctuary for the pain. He was just barely aware of his magic surrounding him like shadows edged with silver. He shifted into his crow form, and wrapped Hermione, the twins, and Luna in his wings, moving to where the other half of his Guardian Set is. When he opened his eyes, they were on a plateau on top of a mountain.

There were runes all over the ground, and scattered across it were his Guardians (he didn't care about anyone else right now). He screeched in anger, shadows spreading out. With his magic as out of control as it was, his form had probably changed some. He wasn't sure how yet, but it had. "What did you do?" His voice was distorted, making his presence that much more terrifying.

"I did what I had to to keep balance. There was no other way." Said Luce, the only one not laying on the floor. All seven of the people that were there had been turned into toddlers with pacifiers around their necks. Why...? Why was this necessary? His Sun... his Storm... his Cloud... Why did this happen?

Anger slowly fled, and left only sadness in its wake. He shifted to a smaller size and awkwardly bird hopped over to Renato. His sweet, sweet Renato. He hadn't ever been quite this small, had he?

His magic settled down, and Harry nudged his way into Renato's arms. He very carefully used his knowledge of Legilimency to connect with Hermione, _"Hermione, you remember how to apparate, right? I need you to go and find us a place to rest. I will take us to Black Manor once everyone is awake to be keyed into the wards."_

 _"Don't worry, Harry. Everything will be alright, you'll see."_

His need to find somewhere (anywhere) else abated, he tried to wake Renato up. "Renato, Renato... It's time to wake up." He hadn't had to do this in what felt like forever. While he missed when Renato was small... he had never wanted this. Not this.

He was shaken from his thoughts by small arms clamping around him. "What do you want, bird?" The sound of the high-pitched voice startled Renato out of his sleepy haze. He sat up, taking Harry with him, and gazed around him. "Why am I so much smaller?"

"You were Cursed. You are now one of the Arcobaleno, Keepers of Balance." Said Luce. Harry glared at her, causing her shadow to shift beneath her. He reined in his magic before he caused more damage. Now was the time to calmly figure things out. He could rage and hate all he wanted later. Even though he managed to calm his brain, his magic was still restless. He reached out and grabbed Viper, the blond guy he didn't recognize, Lal Mirch, and Verde and pushed them through the shadows to a hotel in England. Viper could deal with the technicalities, he'd done his part.

 _"Harry, I have a hotel room. It's really far out of the way, so no-one will find us. Apparate to me whenever."_

His Rain was so efficient. He stepped out of the circle of Renato's arms, changed sizes once more, and wrapped magic and feathers around his Guardians. He pulled on the bond to Hermione, ignoring the shouts of surprise, and found himself in a large room. It had two beds, a bathroom, and a door leading to another bedroom. Harry pulled his three mini-Guardians and himself over to one bed and collapsed on it.

"Harry! What's going on? Harry? Hey! Answer me!"

He made himself small once more, and curled up on top of Renato, Skull and Fon on either side. Transporting himself and several others over that long a distance had used more magic than he had thought. He needed to sleep. He lifted his head and glared at Renato, who was still asking questions. "Be quiet. We will talk tomorrow." That shut everyone up, and Harry made use of the blessed silence to fall asleep on his favorite pillow.

* * *

Reborn glared at the pile of feathers on his chest. Harry had made himself just heavy enough that he couldn't move, but not heavy enough to crush him. Normally, the crushing would not be an issue, but... he was a bit _smaller_ now. He wasn't sure if he wanted to know how that happened or not. On either side of him, Skull and Fon groaned as they shifted in their sleep. Their bodies were probably aching just like his.

What a lovely situation. No, really. He was probably just as enthused about this as the rest of them. He shook himself out of his thoughts and turned his attention to the bond thrumming between him and the strangers. He really wasn't all that surprised, it was a very Harry thing to do after all. Go out to visit his parent's grave, acquire some Guardians (like puppies!), kidnap the rest of his Set off a mountain. All in a day's work for Harry.

With his lack of surprise, Reborn turned to the only female of the group. "I assume you are one of Harry's Guardians? I would like names, please." God he hated the sound of his voice. Though... it would be easier to mess with people like this...

"I am Hermione Granger, Harry's Rain Guardian. Behind me are the twins, Fred and George, Harry's Lightning Guardians. Luna, Harry's Mist Guardian, is in the other room. You can meet her once you have recovered."

Ah. They were Harry's friends from the wizarding world. They must have formed a bond when they were children. Though, he wondered why they hadn't realized it before. He said as much, and immediately their faces darkened. Hermione steeled herself and launched into the unpleasant story. The more he heard, the more he wanted to go kill someone. Mostly the Minister. And the Unspeakables. Definitely the Unspeakables.

They had blocked the bond. He couldn't imagine how much something like that had affected their minds. As soon as his body and Flames were recovered enough, he was going to have to do some serious healing. It didn't matter how much they thought their healing spells had done, even from there he could tell that they were still broken. He might actually need Skull's help. He would be drained, but it would be worth it. Fon could watch them for a little while.

But that would have to wait. He was in no condition to do something of that magnitude. His whole body was aching, and he could feel the fog of sleep settling over his mind. He would sort out the new-old Guardians later, for now they needed reassurance. "You did good following Harry. When we are in a better situation, we will start teaching you how to utilize your Flames. For now, split up the watches, and make sure each of you is taken care of. Being exhausted helps no-one."

Hermione relaxed immediately. She nodded in understanding and began discussing with the twins on who should take first watch. He finally gave into the fog, his arms surrounding the warm bundle on his chest.

Line-Break

Harry was unused to his human form. Except for the brief few times he had shifted in over the years, he had primarily kept to a variation of his crow form. Which meant that it was strange being back to his original form. Strange, but good. He could feel his magic and Flames settling about him like a shroud. He had enjoyed the gasps of shock from the newest half of his Set. He looked quite a bit different to how he used to, having discarded traditional clothing and the like.

He wore a pair of loose black slacks, a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up, a leather vest that emphasized his lithe muscles, and a pair of leather boots. His hair had grown out quite a bit, becoming a spiky mess resembling feathers that he pulled into a high ponytail. White-gold hoops ran along the edge of his elfin ears, three on each side, with gems hanging from them corresponding with the colors of Flames. His skin was tan, with a swirling pattern of shadows underneath if you looked close enough. His scars had faded over time, becoming barely noticeable. His eyes remained a bright emerald green that danced with mischief.

All in all, he looked like a rogue. A very handsome, devilish rogue. It was quite unlike what they would have expected, as the last time they saw him he was too thin and pale, robes hanging off his body like a bag. It appeared that all the time spent in the sun as a crow had transferred to his human form. He was glad that his human form had improved along with his crow form. He hadn't really payed attention to what he looked like when he was explaining things.

Shaking himself free from his thoughts, he returned to carefully shuffling his babyfied Guardians through the fireplace and into Black Manor. The House Elves on the other side had been asked to have a large meal ready, as he was sure that their appetites would stay the same. Once everyone was fed, he would give a tour, and then they would focus on healing and research. Although, for now he would leave the research to those who wanted to do it. He had a pet project to work on.

He had decided that while they were getting used to their baby forms, they would need companions to keep them out of trouble. This included Viper, the blond guy, and Verde. Lal Mirch was unlikely to want one, so he would ask her once he had examples. Each of them was going to have one that fit them. For Reborn, he was thinking of asking one of the magical shape-shifting chameleons if they would like an adventure. Smart things, those chameleons.

For the rest, he was still undecided. For now, though, he needed to focus on getting everyone settled and healed. He stepped through the Floo, grinning as he felt the ambient magic of Black Manor wash over him. Sometimes, he was glad for the slightest bit of elf magic he had inherited, even though it had been what had made him a candidate to be Master of Death. He had only realized that he could feel and interact with Wild magic recently, when Death had decided that he needed to face his heritage.

 _Thanks for being so helpful, Death. We will be best friends forever. Not._ Cue the sarcasm. He walked down the hall to the source of the screaming and shouting as he amused himself with his thoughts. When he arrived at the dining hall, it was to the sight of his Guardians gorging themselves on their food in a very polite manner. It looked like the source of the screaming was Luna finally deciding to introduce herself. This wouldn't have been a problem if she hadn't materialized on top of the table. But she did. It was Luna, after all.

"Ah, Harry. I see you managed to escape the nargles and wrackspurts. I'm glad. They were far too numerous last time I saw you." Said Luna. She had a tendency to cut straight to the heart of things, even if she saw it in a slightly different way. From what he understood, she meant that he was calmer than before. That was good. He jumped onto the table and hugged her.

"It's good to see you. Thank you for setting up the Manor. I fear this place would have been a mess without you." He said. She had probably seen something and realized that the Manor needed to be ready for people. She hopped down off the table, dragging him with her, and motioned to the portraits on the wall.

"When you do your research, you should ask them for help. They have seen many things that we would consider strange. They were quite helpful when I was cleaning. Also, a chameleon is waiting for you in your room. He said he wants to help."

"Thank you. I'll be sure to do that. Why don't you go relax? You've done quite a bit." He had learned not to ask how Luna knows things. The answers were always strange.

"That sounds wonderful. I'll be back later." She said as she walked down the hall.

He ate a quick meal, told them to find him for a tour later, then went to his room. Sure enough, a chameleon was sitting on his bed. It was large, but that was probably due to personal preference. It's body was green, and it's eyes were a happy yellow. A grin stretched its mouth, and it spoke Parseltongue with a strange accent. _"Word on the vine is you're looking for a chameleon who wants adventure. According to the snakes, you're an honorable man. I'm more than happy to make a deal if you give me the details."_

Ah, one of the rare non-argumentative ones. How refreshing. _"I appreciate your consideration. Several of my Guardians were recently Cursed into the form of toddlers. My proposition is that you be a sort of familiar to one. He takes dangerous jobs, and I have several things I need to do. Would you be willing to watch him for me?"_

The reptile thought for a moment, _"Yes, it sounds interesting. My name is Leon. I will give this arrangement a try, although I reserve the right to leave if it does not work out. If you are looking for others who would be willing to do something similar, there is an octopus by the name of Oodako who longs for a partner. Perhaps he is what you are looking for."_

 _"Than- Ah, I appreciate this. Would you like me to introduce you now? The one who will be your partner is still recovering, and may be quite grumpy."_ This was better than Harry had hoped for. Leon would help Reborn, and he had an idea on who to be someone else's partner. Although, he would have to teach them that you never say thank you to a being when you don't know how old they are. Some would consider it to be you placing yourself in their debt, which is never a good thing.

 _"Let him rest more. I will be back tomorrow to meet him."_ Leon hissed as he crawled out the window. Harry's mind was a bit more at ease, knowing that one had already agreed. That finished, he turned back to the books he had brought with him and read about various de-aging curses until they called him for a tour.

So far, it had been getting better. No-one had died yet, which he considered good. Now they would have to see about keeping it that way.

 **A/n: Here is the next extra. This one is Harry playing with Viper.**

Viper was annoyed, and ever so slightly creeped out. Every time they turned around, the crow was right behind them. Every time. Sometimes it would be peeking around a corner, sometimes it would be hanging from the ceiling, sometimes it would be right next to her. It only moved when she wasn't looking, and it always looked dead. Like a stuffed animal or something.

They thought it was a stuffed animal, but stuffed animals don't follow you. They don't look at you with intelligent eyes that stare into your soul, they don't sing with the radio, they don't hang from the curtains. It was really starting to get to them, to the point where they were thinking about paying the damn thing to leave them alone.

They kept waiting for something to happen, like with Verde. But nothing ever did. It was making them paranoid, always checking around corners and behind doors, locking the windows and keeping a dagger under their bed. Eventually, they got used to it and just started ignoring it. And then the crow upped its game. It started sneaking into their room overnight, shouting "Constant Vigilance!" and then disappearing.

This went on for a while, and then it just stopped. Nothing happened. No crow around the corner, no crow popping up behind them, no shouts at night. Nothing. It disconcerted them more than they wanted to admit. They got even more paranoid, the lack of things happening making it worse. It all culminated when the crow walked in front of them as they were eating breakfast and said, "You pranked yourself you know. I just started it."

They would never admit to trying to kill the bird. It was undignified.


	5. Harry the Crow Transition I

**A/n: Hello, my lovely Dragons! This is the first in between chapter, where it's not really part of an arc, but its still really important. I know some people have been concerned about Harry and co. being to OP, and this will hopefully fix that. On another note, one of the reviewers complained about Harry not helping Renato and his Mom. We PMed, and I hope I cleared things up, but this didn't fit in the chapter so i'm saying it here. Renato's mom died of disease. Harry could not help her for reasons that I think will be cleared up in this chapter.**

 **In any case, Thank You to everyone who reviewed! It means a lot, and it helps me with inspiration! Special thanks to kurosakiami01 and MisteriosaSaky for helping me with this chapter.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own HP or KHR. If i did, we would all exist as completely epic dragons. Just in case you didn't know I love dragons.**

They were all seated in the living room, enjoying the sense of peace that came with them being together. Hermione's head was tilted, as if she had been pondering something for a while. Finally, she gave an aggravated sigh and turned to Harry. When you knew it was there, his Elvin heritage was quite obvious, in his ears if nothing else, but at the same time... it made no sense. She had yet to see him do anything even remotely Elvin, which was strange.

It was the same with him being the Master of Death. Even though she could see the faint shadows dancing under his skin, she had yet to see him summon Death, or wield a scythe, or do anything along those lines. It was, quite frankly, driving her nuts. For all that Harry held so many titles... he didn't seem to be all that powerful. At least, not godly.

As she was unable to figure it out... perhaps it would be best to ask him. He should be willing to give her the answers, and it would probably be good for them all to know exactly what their Sky was capable of. Plus, she really needed to ask him why it took so long for them to come back. "Harry, what does it mean to be Master of Death?"

Green eyes cracked open, a playful smirk dancing on his lips. He tilted his head and seemed to consider her question for a moment. "Well... in order for me to explain, you have to understand that Master of Death is an extremely misleading title. I'm not really Their master. In fact, it's more like a partnership. Death offered, and I agreed. The Horcrux caused an imbalance in my soul during my early childhood, and as a result, I was far more volatile than I should have been." He paused for a moment, checking to make sure that they were all following along.

"After the war, Death paid me a visit. Normally, I wouldn't have been able to handle being Death's partner, because of the amount of Wild magic I have to harness. Thankfully, I have just enough Elvin blood that if it was brought to the fore, I would not die a gruesome and bloody death. Obviously, I agreed." He gestured to his delicately pointed ears as he reached for his glass of fire-whiskey. He took a long sip before continuing, "The terms of our agreement were simple. I would make sure that Death didn't do anything stupid like kill an entire city by accident, and Death would make sure that I didn't go insane. Personally, I found this agreement to be quite nice."

He took another long sip of his drink, letting the information soak in for a long moment. "Now, Death is not human, nor do They make any effort to be seen as such. Because of this, They do not communicate in the same way. They can, but it's not natural for Them the way it is for us. Instead, they prefer images. For example, if They send me a picture of Themselves standing beneath the rain, then they are most likely sad. It does take some trial and error to get used to, and it was frustrating at first, but it smoothed out later."

He sighed in contentment, "But strange as it may seem... I think that may be one of the best decisions that I ever made. If I hadn't done it, things would have turned out much worse. As it is right now, I have a full Guardian Set, and I think I'm happier than I ever was. Any questions?"

"Why did it take so long for us to resurrect? And why are we True Vampires? It doesn't really make sense to give us more power for dying, so why would Death do that? Also, do you have more power because of you being Death's partner? And why aren't there more people here, at Black Manor? For all the time we've spent here, I've never seen any sign of anyone having lived here." Rambled Hermione. When she stopped to take a breath, Harry broke out into laughter.

"You haven't changed at all, have you?" His laughter slowly died to down to quiet chuckles, and when he had his breath back, a gleeful grin spread across his face, "Hermione, would you believe me if I told you that Death has paperwork? Because They do. I saw it once. There were these giant stacks of paper spread all across Their desk, almost spilling onto Their chair. And let me tell you, that is the most amazing chair ever. It's too bad that Death won't let me touch it..."

"Harry, answer the rest of Hermione's questions. I'm quite curious as well. Did Death give you more power?" Reborn decided that that was a good time to switch couches, sitting beside Harry and pulling him under his arm. "Well? Are you just going to sit there imagining Death's eternal torment, or are you going to finish explaining?"

"Ah, sorry. As amusing as it is to think of Death's paperwork... I'll explain. You can stop glaring now. Ok, so True Vampires. You're not really vampires, it's more like... Death made it so that you would be easy to keep track of if you ever went rogue. By making it so that you need blood to survive, even if it's not that much, if you go rogue, we can track you down by looking for places that people have gone missing, or have been bitten. You are a bit stronger than you were, but overall you shouldn't be noticing too much of a difference."

"Well, that fits with what we found. Nothing really tasted different, or felt different, and we didn't have any desire to eat people. Continue, Harry, with the enlightenment of us poor uninformed people." Chimed the twins.

"Well, then onto the next question! It's hard to say whether I have more power or not, because Death did form a bond with me, but the power that came with the bond is not available. I think the best way to explain it would be that you can think of me like another Balancer. Like the Arcobaleno, but not so unfortunate. Death and I balance each other out, and the resulting power from that is tied into the... spirit of the planet, Gaia, thus making us Balanced. If we fall out of Balance, the bond with Gaia will be severed, and Death and Life will be suspended. Are you following me so far?"

Hermione, Luna, and Reborn nodded, and the rest gathered and quietly discussed for a moment before nodding. "Good. Now you know why I say we have the most important Set. You keep me sane, I keep Death sane, the Arcobaleno help with Balance, and everyone is happy. Make sense? Good. I believe that Hermione said something about Black Manor?"

Hermione nodded, and Harry took a large sip of his drink to wet his throat. He had been doing a lot of talking, and whiskey wasn't exactly the best option right now, but it would have to do. "Black Manor is special. I'm sure you've noticed that I often send you out, and keep you from staying here too long. That's because if you stay here, the Manor will batter away at your mind's defenses until you go insane. It's not pretty. A really good example is my Godfather's cousin Bellatrix. She went totally insane after she stumbled on this place at random. She was later put out of her misery. The only reason I can stay here is my Elvin blood. The house recognizes it, and has decided that I make a good guest. It's really very strange. Magic is weird."

Skull nodded emphatically when he said the last bit. His shoulders were shaking with silent laughter as he said, "Guys, while magic is cool... wizards do very stupid things. Like create houses that make you go insane. And let children compete in a tournament with dragons. And let an incompetent Minister ruin their community." At the rounds of laughter that went up, he grinned, "I could keep going, but I think I made my point. I am very glad I am not a wizard."

"Skull... that is completely true. I have nothing to say in their defense." Harry said. They all started cracking up again, and when it died down, Fon decided now was as good a time as any to speak.

He waved a hand in the air, causing Luna to carefully move her head out of smacking range, and coughed. It was a very polite cough, but had a very 'stop joking now and be serious' vibe to it. Not that it worked, but at least he got their attention. "While we are asking important questions that should have been answered before now, how long has it been since you died?" He said, motioning to the wizards. "And is there going to be any issue with this 'imbalance'?"

Harry grimaced slightly at the question, "We're not sure. The wizarding world used a different calendar that mostly synced up with the muggle one. After I left, mostly to get away from the Ministry, which made me out to be a villain when I refused to be involved with stupid politics after they ignored me for over a decade, I retreated into myself, so I wasn't aware for a long time. However, based on records I've found and what I've been hearing... I'd say it took a good 60 years for them to be resurrected. This is after it took a good five years for them to even realize I was missing, and another five for them to start accusing people of being traitors."

He watched them for a moment, watching the faint horror on their faces as they realized exactly how long he had been alive. He turned back to Fon, "No, there won't be any issues. It was caused in the first place because the Horcrux was feeding on my Flames in order for it to survive. Had it not been doing that, it would have been destroyed by my mind before I even knew about magic. It caused a lot of damage and prevented me from feeling any bonds made, but staying in my crow form for so long healed almost all of it. The rest was fixed when I completed my Set."

Questions answered, they sat in silence for a while. They were all busy sorting through the vast amount of information being thrown at them. Then Luna went and made it worse. "Harry, I think now would be a good time to share what I've found out on the Arcobaleno. Maybe that might help with digesting what you've said."

Harry thought for a moment, then nodded. Yes, that would help. Especially with the concept of Balance. "Go ahead. Just... try to make it as simple as possible? No nargles and wrackspurst please. Considering the first Arcobaleno meeting is in a few days... I'm gonna go plan some things while you explain, ok?" Harry said, a wicked grin stretching across his face. Skull was definitely bringing a camera.

"Alright. Since Harry has asked me to be serious, I will. First thing you should know, is that without Balance, everything would die. That's why there are so many different Balancers. The Arcobaleno are among these Balancers, and they function to prevent those with Flames from getting too out of control. You may be thinking 'The Vindice do that', and you are right, but that's not what I mean. The Arcobaleno have the ability to soak up Flames from the air. This is extremely important, because if there were to many remnants of Flames in the air... all the ordinary people would die.

"Obviously, Gaia does not want that to happen, so she picks the strongest user of each Flame, and carefully pulls out part of their Flames, thus leaving the capacity to draw from the air. That's how the Arcobaleno keep balance. Your job is much harder due to the fact that Luce forced this on both Gaia and you, which directly resulted in this curse. We are working on a way to break it, but it's slow going right now.

"You should also remember that there was a time when the Arcobaleno were not needed. It was due to a combination of wizards and normal humans that the Balance was broken. Remember that, because it will come in handy. Oh, and one last thing. Bad, bad things would happen if you died." She gave a cheery smile at their faces, "So the only solution is to not die! Have fun with that, cause all of you are famous now!"

Skull sighed, "So... I'm finally famous, but not in a 'Look at the great Skull-sama!' way, more in a 'Let's go kill him and ruin the Balance!' way. Just perfect. Maybe wizards aren't the only ones who do stupid things."

 **So, here's the extra. It's Lal Mirch reacting to Harry and Reborn flirting, so it takes place before the curse.**

Lal heard it first. She was going to enter the house first, but the loud squawking was infinitely more interesting. And it provided an opportunity for her to learn about her whereabouts.

"Why did you flirt with her? You agreed there would be no flirting while we were here! Especially with me!"

"But Corvo, you're so attractive, how could I resist? You know how much I love making you jealous..."

Yes, this would be infinitely more entertaining. Now to find out who's talking.

"Yes, yes, we both know that we are both attractive, and we both know you love flirting with everything, but that doesn't make it better. If anything it makes it worse! It's like... I don't know what it's like, but it's not good!"

She peered into the clearing, somewhat disturbed to see what looked like a crow sitting on the arm of a man with a suit and a fedora. Said crow was arguing with the man, and it almost seemed like a strange form of flirting. Which was what they were arguing about. The crow threw it's wings up in a distinctly human fashion.

"Fine! I give up! Feel free to flirt with whoever whenever you like. I don't care anymore." It said in a huff. Clearly the crow was not amused. The man reached out, his eyes twinkling (how did he do that?), and stroked the side of it's face with gentle fingers.

"Corvo, calm down. You know that the only one I care about is you. It's only been you." Said the man. Things just kept getting stranger. Maybe being here wouldn't be so bad, not if the whole time was as entertaining as this. She watched as they continued to flirt, she couldn't wait to watch the reactions of her subordinates when she told them about this.

She never saw the smirks exchanged between friends as she left, and she never saw the crow grow in size and fly off. She had already gone, her patience at it's end.


	6. Harry the Crow Act II Part I

**A/n: Hello, my lovely Dragons! I am very sorry, I intended to update sooner, but I got sick and spent a lot of time sleeping. I tried writing, but my brain kept spewing out very strange things, so that got postponed until today. This chapter is going into canon, and there isn't an extra because I'm still super tired and headachey.**

 **Super big thanks to everyone who reviewed, and thanks to kurosakiami01 and MisteriosaSaky for helping me get this the way I wanted it to. I really liked this one, so I hope you enjoy**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own KHR or HP**

Reborn sighed. Iemitsu was an idiot, as evidenced by the bound Sky that had just fallen down the stairs. Of course, of course Iemitsu would bind one of the most powerful Skies since the Primo. Of course. And the young Sky in front of him would obviously have been much better off if they had just taught him how to use Flames without mentioning the mafia.

But no. Iemitsu wasn't that reasonable. Not that Timoteo had escaped from his wrath, nor would he escape Harry's once he explained about this "top secret job." Harry was his Sky, there was no way he was keeping secrets from him for very long.

He sighed once more and said "Ciaossu, I'm Reborn, your new tutor. Pleasure to meet you, Sawada Tsunayoshi." He tipped in his hat in a semblance of a bow. The brat looked so confused. Apparently, no-one had told him anything. It looked like he was seeing one of the most debilitating downsides to a bound Sky. Everyone tended to forget about them because they simply couldn't feel their presence anymore.

Unlike binding just one Flame, where others could still feel the remaining flames, faint though they may be, binding a Sky meant binding all the things that made Sky Flames. Hence the lack of presence. Not only that, but it would throw off his center of balance so severely that he would be amazed if the brat could walk a mile without tripping.

He was extremely glad he had asked Hermione to do research for him. Discretely, of course, because he didn't want Harry finding out until he knew the exact extent of the damage. It wasn't as bad as it could be, the kid still had a personality, but it wasn't great either. At least he could still feel the brat's Flames through the binds. That would make it easier to remove them.

Even so, he couldn't start coaxing his Flames through the cracks in the binds yet. He had to get it so that his body could handle the Flames first, which was going to be difficult, because the poor kid looked to be on the verge of malnourished. Hmmm, he'd have to look into that later. Perhaps something at school was causing it.

As he went about his first day in the Sawada household, he was... disconcerted by Nana. She was a perfectly sweet lady, but she was absolutely delusional about the world. She seemed to live in a fantasy world where everything was perfect, and it didn't matter if her son came home with bruises, because Iemitsu had told her the boy would be just fine.

He was very glad that he hadn't told Harry about this yet, because if he had, the sick crow would have wanted to come with him. It didn't matter if he was vomiting every day, it didn't matter if he had a fever, none of that matter if there was a Sky who needed help. He would tell him, but... he'd wait until the sickness blew over. At least he had managed to blackmail Shamal into checking him over. Now the only thing that would help was time.

He was also quite unhappy about the amount of bullying going on in that school. Tsuna appeared to be the main focus of it, and it seemed to have done a lot of damage to his self-esteem. He had only managed to stop the beating, something Tsuna seemed far too resigned too. The boy had been far more grateful than he should have been when he took him to sushi afterwards.

After the first day was over, he lay in bed beside the brat and thought about the best way to help. He'd need to have a decent amount of physical conditioning, and if the brat found some Guardians, that would help with the transition between bound and non-bound. So, tomorrow he would contact the Gokudera brat in Italy, and he would start Tsuna on some basic running in the morning. That would be a good start, and he'd go from there, see what kind of reinforcement benefited Tsuna (was he already so attached?) the most, see what he would be best at. The unbinding should help with his memory too.

Sometimes, Reborn wondered how he got himself in these kinds of situations. First Dino, who hadn't been bound and therefore was much easier, and now Tsuna.

Perhaps the Potter Luck was rubbing off on him...

Line-Break

Meanwhile, Skull had decided to go explore England. This would have been a better idea if he hadn't been able to see magic. Being able to do so attracted the attention of several witches and wizards (pointy hats! Pointy hats! Maybe Harry had one?), which really wasn't a good thing. He really should have brought Harry with him, but part of the reason he was here was to pick up supplies.

They had a system where several of them would be out in the world at a time, and then they'd go back and switch with whoever had stayed at Black Manor so nobody went insane. Harry... just went with whoever he wanted to. Mostly Reborn, but sometimes he'd go with one of the others. It really just depended on what they were planning on doing.

This was one of the things Harry really should have been with him for. He was going to the wizarding world to pick up a pre-ordered pack of potion supplies. They had found a potion they thought might temporarily counteract the curse, so they needed the supplies for it. Luckily, Harry had managed to get an owl to take a message to the goblins for him, who had agreed to help, seeing as how he kind of prevented everyone from being massacred in a bloody rampage.

Much owling later, the goblins had come to an agreement where one person of Harry's choice would come to the bank in Gringotts, and they would test said person to see if he truly was a Guardian, after which money would exchange hands, and they would get potions things. Unfortunately, they had failed to tell them that the ministry were watching Gringotts for suspicious activity, since they apparently thought that since the Potter Vaults hadn't been relinquished to the Ministry, there was a chance that the Potter Legacy still survived. (They were both right and wrong. There was no Potter Legacy.)

And as Skull was a very accomplished actor, he had been the one picked to go. He had been doing quite well, up until he actually got into Gringotts. Things got very strange when the goblin at the desk announced in a very loud voice, "So, you're the one Milord Potter has sent. Well, he certainly wasn't joking about you being a Guardian. Hmph. An Arcobaleno as a Guardian to the Master of Death. Oh, we are looking quite forward to seeing how much the future changes."

With that cryptic message, not even bothering to check anything, the goblin handed him a small bag (probably one of those expanding ones) and shooed him on his way with a grin. And he had been doing so well to avoid attracting attention, which was really hilarious, because how does one not notice a small child wandering around an alley with a lost expression?

Actually, you don't. Instead, you carefully walk up to a motherly looking lady and say, "E-excuse me... Would you help me find my parents? They said they would be going to some place called Gringotts, but I fell behind and got lost..." after which said kind lady would quickly help you find the building, and it would be smooth sailing. He could just run rooftops on the way back.

At least, that was the plan. As soon as he got outside, he was accosted by several tall men (everyone seemed tall nowadays, and it was very annoying) demanding to know just who he was. Reacting as only someone used to these situations ending badly did, he ducked between a pair of legs and sprinted to the nearest climbable building, bag tied to his waist.

Spells were flying, but thanks to training with the wizards in their Guardian Set, he dodged quite easily, identifying some of them by the shouts he heard behind him. He quickly scaled the building, hopping along the rooftops as he made his way back to the alley that would return him to regular England. When he finally made it (damn these inconvenient robes they had forced him into! They made everything harder), he hopped over the wall, having gotten in that way, and ran to his bike. Once there, he activated the portkey they had made him bring just in case.

Really, it seemed like the Potter Luck infected everyone connected with Harry...

Line-Break

He hated being sick. You would think, "oh, he's the Master/Partner of Death, he wouldn't get sick," and for the most part, you would be right. Except.. every once in a while, the strain on his body from everything (supporting Arcobaleno, Death, Wizards, you know, the usual) would get to him, and his immune system would crash, resulting in him getting sick. Which was why he was bundled in bed right now, lamenting over the fact that everything fun happened when he was sick and couldn't do anything.

Like Reborn going off to Japan for who knows why. Or the twins going over to Japan to set up a prank shop in a building that Hermione had scouted out. Not only would the building make a good location for a store, but it also had a second floor which would function as a base for people who were taking breaks from Black Manor but still wanted to continue research.

He snuffled pitifully. Maybe if he sounded sad enough he could get Fon to make him some hot chocolate, the kind that was warm, creamy, soothing on his throat, warm, and chocolatey... Yes, that was exactly what he needed. "Fon! Fooooooon!" His voice was raspy and hoarse, mucus clogging his throat from drainage.

"Yes?" Said Fon as he appeared from behind the doorframe. They had yet to figure out how he did that, just... appearing out of nowhere whenever you say his name. It was really quite strange, and they had already checked for magic. Fon sighed, "Let me guess, you want hot chocolate, right?"

"Yes, please." And that was the last of the talking he was going to be doing. It was not helping his throat at all. He reached over and blew his nose on one of the many tissues on the bedside table. He waited for a bit (hot chocolate took forever), and ended up dozing off. When he woke up there was a potion and a steaming cup one the side-table sitting on a note.

He debated with himself whether it was worth it or not to reach over and read the note. On one hand, he was warm and tired and half-asleep. On the other... hot chocolate ( _Fon's_ hot chocolate), a potion to make him feel better, and a note saying what people were doing. Well, the other hand it is. He reached over with slow movements grabbed the note first. He skimmed it, paying just enough attention to get the gist of it.

Essentially, he was supposed to drink the hot chocolate, and then drink the potion, and then finish the chocolate. That was fine with him. He pondered what the twins were doing. He glanced at the clock. Considering the time there, probably either sleeping or working on pranks. Hermione was probably either sleeping as well, or hounding them to be more careful and actually use the protective equipment. Or she could be working on making the store both muggle and magical. They would probably have an aisle on the end that only magicals could see. (Who knew what those three would come up with)

Everyone had been ecstatic when he had proposed the idea of setting up a base in Japan. In fact, Fon was happier than anyone, because it would give him somewhere to train his student away from her family, as well as get her used to another culture. Actually... if he knew Fon at all, he was probably downstairs working on martial arts stuff. (So sue him if he didn't know the exact details of hand-to-hand)

Skull was probably either finished, or close to finished with getting the ingredients from the goblins. He wasn't exactly worried... but things tended to stray from plans when any of his Guardians were involved. Well, that was why they were the best.

Satisfied with knowing what his people were doing, he finished his drinks and bundled back into the bed. The house was way too cold. (Why did they keep it so cold?) Then again, he did sleep better when he was warm and the surroundings were cold. He relaxed all his muscles, reaching out along his bonds one more time for reassurance, and then slipped into the oasis of sleep.

Line-Break

You know, normally when you think of looking at your tutor, you think you would be looking up. That wasn't really the case here, strange as it was, even when he had fallen down the stairs and was currently laying on the floor, belly down. In fact, it was so far from looking up, that if his tutor (and what a strange thought that was) was just a little bit shorter, he would be looking down instead.

The first thing came that came to mind as he looked at the person who would be teaching him for a while, was small. Small, angry, and scary. He had a feeling that not many would pick up on the child-who-felt-like-a-man being angry, but the way the man-child's eyes glinted, he definitely was. It didn't feel like he was angry at him, but it was still rather unpleasant.

After the Reborn introduced himself, his day remained relatively normal. He went to school, got picked on by the bullies, had his lunch stolen, and just had a normal school day. Well, normal for him. Afterwards, when he was just stepping out of the building, the bullies cornered him, and he prepared himself for another round of bruises and barely healed cuts from dull knives.

Or at least, that's what should have happened. He was leaning against the wall, eyes closed (it didn't hurt as much if he didn't see it coming), and several loud thumps and curses reached his ears. He cautiously opened his eyes, surprised to see the large kids who would have beaten him up laying on the ground, hands clutching various parts of their bodies.

A slight weight gently settled itself on his shoulder, and a high pitched voice rang in his ear, "Tsuna, you weren't planning on doing anything, were you." It wasn't a question.

"Why would you help me?" He blurted out, and blushed when Reborn's gaze rested on him. He fidgeted in the silence, "No-one... no-one's ever cared before... so why would you be any different?" His voice trailed off into a whisper. Why would this man (and the child was definitely a man, diminutive though he may be) who didn't know him at all help him when so many others just passed him by, when they didn't care, didn't even seem to see him when he was right in front of them? Why?

Even his own father had forgotten about him, disappearing off into the sunset with nary a word, leaving him and his mother by themselves. And then... then this man came along, and just _saw him._ Without any effort, he just saw him, had even spent a few minutes talking to him like a normal person, and had seemed to actually give a damn about what happened to him.

Reborn pulled his sleeve up with hands that bordered on gentle, "Tsk, why would you let yourself get so bruised? Idiot... looks like I'll have wrap these cuts up at the house." Reborn met his eyes, "If you ever, and I mean ever, get cuts or anything like this again, tell someone. You could have ended up with a very bad infection, and the fact that you didn't I'm putting entirely down to luck."

Tsuna nodded. Maybe... maybe this was one adult he could actually rely on. He was explaining things, not just telling him to do them. He had always wanted to know why, but they always got mad at him for asking too many questions. Not to mention that sometimes the teachers cheered the bullies on...

"Well, not much we can do about it now. I suppose we might as well go get some food. I've heard there's good sushi around here, you know the place?"

"Uh, yeah, I think I so..." How long had it been since someone treated him like an equal?

"Good. Lead the way, Tsuna." Reborn perched on his shoulder, adjusting his hat and chameleon. "Ah, and one more thing. Never, ever, think you are worthless. Never. If you do, I'll kick your ass."

Maybe this wouldn't be so bad, Tsuna thought, a smile on his face for the first time in what felt like forever.

 **Yeah, no extra this time. Sorry. Not enough inspiration for one. I'll try to have one in the next chapter.**

 **Scarlet**


	7. Harry the Crow Act II Part II

**A/n: Hello, my lovely Dragons! So, I meant to post this chapter yesterday, but I went to a concert and when I got back I had some stuff to fix, so it got delayed. This chapter is a change of pace from the others, and it's more of a character building chapter than true plot advancement. At the same time, it does give hints for the future. My inspiration for this was silence, glittering clouds, and Sweden. It doesn't make sense, but it worked.**

 **I hope you enjoy! Thanks to everyone who reviews! And favorites/follows!**

 **Disclaimer: Would I be writing fan fiction if I owned these?**

He never got used to the silence. No matter how many times he flew, it still shocked him how quiet it was above the clouds. The endless blue sky only broken by a line of glittering clouds, the sun in the sky, none of it made any noise. Every once in a while he would pass a plane, or a bird, or a storm would go on below, but the silence was always there. It hovered, both eerie and peaceful, waiting for its chance to once more muffle everything but his thoughts.

His thoughts, the one thing that constantly changed in the never ending sky. He stared out, carefully avoiding the sun with his gaze. From what Reborn had said, the kid was in a bad situation, and none of it was his fault. Damn Iemitsu, and damn Timoteo. He knew he never should have trusted them with a Sky. It had been a hopeful mistake. He had been hoping that maybe once, the people in charge would actually take steps to make things right. Oh, how wrong he had been.

Honestly, he should have just taken Xanxus and Tsuna, because he had the feeling that that would have been a better upbringing than what they did get. Xanxus's mother was a whore, which wasn't necessarily a bad thing, he had nothing against whores, but she had been delusional. She had thought that Xanxus was the child of a man she had seen once, just because he could make his hands glow. It wasn't an unfounded accusation, and it would have been fine for Timoteo to take the boy in as a member of the Vongola Family.

But he didn't. He decided to raise the boy as his son, and he didn't even tell Harry that Xanxus was adopted. Harry was still pissed at him for that, but he knew he couldn't have done anything more for the boy. Hell, he had been Xanxus's favorite teacher, despite the fact that he snuck in to do it. He, a crow, had been his favorite teacher, because he taught him what he wanted to know, and showed him how he could use what he didn't like as much in relation to that. Even more than that, he wasn't condescending, nor was he patronizing.

He and Xanxus had been close until Timoteo meddled once more and whisked the boy away. Harry tried to get back to him, he did, but he would have risked Reborn's jobs. He met him again several years later, when Xanxus became head of the Varia and started to gather a Guardian Set. He had been taken aback when the man thanked him, especially since Xanxus never thanked anyone.

And that had been the last of their interaction until Xanxus found out he wasn't who he thought he was. Xanxus had called him in a rage, demanding to know if Harry knew. When Harry became absolutely livid, Xanxus calmed down, and they started planning. Things weren't supposed to turn out that way. Xanxus should not have been crystallized.

But he would find a way to fix it. He would. Just like he would break the Arcobaleno Curse.

He sighed, his gaze once more lingering on the glittering clouds that so reminded him of Skull. Before he could do any of that, he needed to help this child who was still willing to be helped. Step one, carefully degrade the seal to prevent too many Flames at once. Step two, convince the child that yes, he did actually matter to people. After that, they would start training, and contact people to get him a Set.

But even as he flew through the endless blue, the wind cool and soft under his wings, he knew none of it would be easy. He sighed and let himself fall into the trance he used when flying. There really was no point in thinking about it now. It's not like he could do anything.

Although, it really was a shame he couldn't apparate (he would have been there by now!), not with the Ministry watching for unregistered magical activity. Potter legacy, ha! Like that would happen anytime soon. Ah well, it wasn't really Skull's fault. Goblins like messing with people, and he probably should have told him that before.

Whoops.

Line-Break

Silence.

It was so fragile that even saying it's name could break it. It was such a rare thing to find in a world of cars, phones, TVs, and household amenities. At the same time, it was the only thing that ever gave Tsuna peace. He always saw too much, felt too much, smelled too much, heard too much... It got overwhelming, and sometimes he wondered if perhaps everyone else saw the world a little duller.

He liked his vibrant world, even if it was painful and dark at times. Even if he had a father who disappeared and a mother who didn't care, he liked his vibrant world. So when he told someone about it and instead of helping they got him a doctors appointment, he lost all hope of anyone understanding his need for silence.

He knew other people could lose themselves in other things, like music, but to him, having a moment where there was nothing to hear, where the view didn't constantly change, where scents drifted slowly by instead of rushing, was a blessing. It was part of the reason he found himself with a love of high places. Useless as he was, no one would miss him if he snuck off to the tall cliff in the forest. Not even his mother.

He'd first found the place when he was running from bullies. There was a hill you could walk up, but it was long and steep. It was far faster to just climb up, even if it took him months to figure out how. All the trouble he went through to get up was worth it. The first time he stood up there, he felt lighter, like maybe he could actually do something. Even if that feeling went away, he knew had a place to come back to.

That cliff became more of a home to him than his house ever had been.

So when a large crow landed next to him, he was understandably startled. He was even more startled when the crow settled itself behind his perch on the tree and started preening his hair. Despite the weirdness of it, he relaxed when that was all the crow did. It was actually kind of comforting, as if it knew how much he needed a break from thinking.

As great as Reborn was, sometimes he needed a break. He thought that Reborn had known that, because when he was certain the man had seen him when he snuck off. Except, instead of making a big deal of it like most people, he had just let him go. To Tsuna, that meant the world.

He stared at the glittering clouds that hovered like wraiths as he soaked in the silence. He had been getting better. So much better that he rarely tripped anymore. He was actually happy. It had been so long that he'd forgotten what that felt like.

And as he sat there in fragile silence, a giant crow preening his hair, he felt himself relax, and thought that maybe things would get better. No, not would. Already were. He was being overwhelmed less and less, and it looked like things would _keep_ getting better. Maybe...maybe he wasn't so useless after all. Maybe he could do something. He thought of all the bullies, of the teachers who were convinced he was useless.

He was done with that. His resolve firmed, the feeling of someone believing in him, of someone actually caring, making him believe in himself. After all, if he couldn't believe in himself, he could believe in the person who believed in him.

He would show those bullies. He would become greater than any of them.

The glittering clouds shined down, reflecting light from the sun, and he laughed. A free, joyous laugh that surprised him and the crow. He was getting better, and that was the first step. Actually being greater...Well, that could come later.

For now, he was happy, and that's what mattered.

Line-Break

It didn't matter if Reborn knew where Tsuna and Harry were, he wasn't going out there no matter what. He knew better than to stop a young Sky from coping. Especially when the Sky was very, very strong. He had seen the signs, so he wasn't really surprised when he saw Tsuna sneaking out his window. He was even less surprised when Harry showed up minutes later and took off again without saying a word.

Skies tended to see the world a little differently than others, because their Flames were actively hunting for a Set. In general, Skies liked being aware of their surroundings, so the only time they actually relaxed was when everything was silent. Not artificial silence like you got from head phones (muffled, not silent), but true silence, where there _was nothing to hear_.

Unfortunately, most Skies didn't realize that that was what they needed until later. Some, like Timoteo, never realized it. If Harry hadn't shown Xanxus, it was likely that he would have never had a moment of peace. That was probably why the man had thanked Harry later, even if afterward they had gone back to their strange bickering/teaching.

When you became part of a Guardian Set, you instinctively knew that you should not, under any circumstances, follow your Sky when they left for silence. Doing that was just asking for your Sky to push you away and break the bond. The only people Skies would allow were other Skies. There were theories about what happened when they left, but everyone knew better than to ask. And if they didn't, they learned quick.

Which was why Reborn was sitting in the kitchen of the Sawada house wondering if Tsuna was coming along quickly enough to start gathering Guardians. Harry had already arranged for the Gokudera brat to come up, but until he got here they couldn't be sure what Flame he had. There was already a Rain and a Cloud near Tsuna, so they would probably fill those roles in, depending on their temperaments.

They would either click, or they wouldn't. There really wasn't a middle ground. Harry's way of gathering Guardians was a good example. He had spent less than a day with Skull and Fon before they became his Guardians.

Really though, Tsuna was doing much better than he had thought he would. It turned out that actions spoke louder than words after all. It didn't matter how harsh his words were, as long as he gave simple physical reassurance, Tsuna got better and better. Pats on the head, a tug on the hair, walking him home from school, just simple things that anyone could have given. No matter how stoic he was on the outside, Reborn was prouder than a mother hen on the inside.

The boy had _smiled_ when Reborn hadn't done anything to stop him from leaving.

 _He smiled_.

Things were going so much better. Tsuna was acclimating to his Flames, he was getting better physically, and he finally had someone he could trust.

Perhaps Harry and Reborn could truly save a Sky from yet another traumatic childhood. Both Harry and Xanxus had been raised in less than stellar environments, and both had been betrayed by parent figures. (Timoteo, Dumbledore)

Skies seemed to attract all kinds of trouble. Maybe it wasn't Potter luck after all...

Then again, maybe it was.

Line-Break

"You can talk, can't you?"

The kid was surprisingly observant. "Yes. I'm Harry, and you are Tsuna. For now, in the silence of the sky, that's enough."

There was a pause as day slowly faded into night, and then the soft voice spoke again, "Do...do you see the vibrant world too? I know you're not a crow, not entirely, so I thought that maybe you were like me..."

Yes, very observant. "Yeah, I see the vibrant world. It makes you wonder what everyone else sees. Do they see the same sea of green? The same endless blue? I don't think we'll ever know the answer. By the way, good guess. You're right, I'm not a crow. What do I feel like to you?"

"You're warm, like the sky. It's like when I'm with Reborn, but you're more mellow. With Reborn, it feels like if you stare at him too long you'll go blind. With you, it's...warm and mellow, like you'll always be there."

"You're better at sensing Flames than I was when I started." He sighed. Perhaps it would be easier to explain in his other form. The kid was startled when he shifted, and stared at him for a moment with something akin to awe. It wore off quickly (Reborn's fault for doing weird things), and he returned to staring at the sky. "I suppose I owe you an explanation. I'm assuming Reborn told you about Flames? Yes? Good. You and I are both Skies. That's why we are connected, it's just something that happens. It's not like a Guardian bond, but it's definitely there. Skies gravitate toward each other, but none of us know why.

"There's just this instinctive feeling that we can trust each other, that we can pour our hearts out and nobody will know. You are the second Sky that I've taught. There are some things that you just don't tell to someone who's not a Sky. Reborn is a fantastic teacher, but there are things that he just won't know. If you ever run into anything like that, ask me. I'll help in any way I can."

They stared at the stars as Tsuna absorbed the information. He looked up at the man sitting next to him. He probably shouldn't trust him, but the man felt so warm, and he hadn't lied to him. All of a sudden, the pieces clicked into place. This man was Reborn's Sky. If he could trust Reborn, the bright, harsh Sun, surely he could trust the Sky that held him up.

He leaned on Harry's shoulder, and let the silence speak for him.

After all, sometimes saying nothing is more comfort than even the softest of words.

 **You get an extra this week! I call this the Octo-Nut/Coco-Pus Story! I was inspired by a real life video of an octopus in a coconut... This is much needed humor...**

"What the hell is Oodako doing?"

Reborn was mystified. Sadly, due to Skull and Harry being pranksters, this wasn't very uncommon. What _was_ uncommon was the coconut that was rolling down the hills in the large clearing that surrounded Black Manor. What was even _more_ uncommon, was the fact that whenever the coconut got to the bottom of a hill, it split into two halves and an octopus popped out and carried it back up.

And then there was the question of _how_ the coconut got there. Coconuts are _not_ migratory, and never had been. Especially migratory to the point of crossing into a sort-of pocket dimension (he still wasn't clear on that...). He had the feeling that the explanation was even stranger than the coconut-rolling-octopus. Still, it probably wouldn't hurt to ask. Probably.

"Why, he's playing! What did you think he was doing?" Harry piped up. Reborn stared at him for a moment. A mischievous grin spread across Harry's face, and he dropped down from the tree he was in. "You didn't think it was a magic coconut, did you?"

"No, Harry. There was no way it could be a magic coconut summoned from the depths of hell, not when there are wizards around. Of course not. Nothing like that has ever happened before." The sarcasm was practically dripping off his tongue. "Remember France?"

Harry paled in horror and leaned forward, one finger poking Reborn. "We agreed that France never happened. _Never happened._ " He hissed the words as if he was speaking parseltongue. Reborn leaned back and nodded, point made. Harry relaxed, horrifying memories diverted. "Ah, back to the magicl coconut that's not magic. I wanted to try coconut milk, so I got a coconut, but then the milk wasn't that good, and I remembered seeing a movie where they couldn't afford horses but they still pretended that they had them by banging two coconut halves together and saying "clipity-clop clipity-clop" and I really wanted to try it so I hollowed out the coconut, but then Oodako liked the coconut so I gave it to him, and that's how we got here, and-"

Harry would have kept rambling (anything to forget France), but Reborn covered his mouth with a hand, a smirk spreading across his face. "So, what you're saying is that you got a coconut and then gave it to Oodako? No magic migratory coconuts involved?"

Harry glared at the hand covering his mouth. He couldn't answer, not really, since it was covering his mouth. He could lick it, but he'd done that before, and the consequences weren't pretty. Not at all. So he glared until it was removed, then he answered. "Exactly. No magic coconuts at all." He started to walk away, but then he saw the coconut rolling down the hill again. A wicked grin stretched its way across his features as he spoke. "Hey...what if we convince Oodako to help us play a prank on Skull involving magic migratory coconuts?"

"You read my mind. Figuratively, I hope." Reborn and Harry stared at each other for a moment, and then simultaneously burst into maniacal laughter. This would be the most amazing prank ever.

It was only later that Reborn realized he never found out how Harry got a coconut in the first place.


	8. Harry the Crow Act II Part III

**A/n: Hello, my lovely Dragons! To those of you who celebrate it, Happy thanksgiving! I wasn't planning to post this week, but I had more free time than I thought I would, so here ya go.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own them.**

 **P.S. For those of you who know enough about music to pick something out, if you want to know what they are** **singing, PM me! I have it written down!**

 **Extra Comes First this time!**

Squalo was terrified. The Skies had taken over the kitchen and grill, and were currently singing songs about turkey. The crow and the short one were singing harmony, and Xanxus was leaning against the counter clapping his hands in a rhythm that laid underneath the melody while he sang the bass.

Squalo quickly backed out of the kitchen. He did not need to see that. He never wanted to see that side of Xanxus again. Though, Xanxus did have a very nice voice...

He shook his head. He needed to go do something extremely exhausting. Maybe then he could get the image of Skies dancing while they cooked out of his head. Yes, forgetting about everything sounded very nice.

Elsewhere, Reborn shuddered. He had a feeling that someone had forgotten about the rule that said: If the Skies are in the kitchen for any reason, RUN. RUN VERY FAR. But remember to be home for dinner, or they will hunt you down.

He felt very sorry for that poor soul, but at the same time, he was glad it wasn't him.

 **On to the story!**

Hayato's first impression of the supposed Sky was that he was wimpy. His second impression was that he was stronger than he seemed. He had been warned by the talking crow (how weird was that?) that the Sky was recovering from something, but that still didn't prepare him for the sight of a Sky who was too thin, and seemed to be unused to his own Flames.

But even so, he was determined not to like him. After all, if he refused first, there would be no sense of disappointment on his end. No Family had accepted him before, so why would this one be any different? It wouldn't.

Or at least, that's what he thought. He'd decided to give the Sky a challenge, and if he completed it, then he would agree to be part of the Family. When the Sky (Tsunayoshi) tilted his head and said "You feel sad", all his plans got thrown out the window in a fit of rage. Looking back on it, he could acknowledge that he had been very stupid that day.

He could make a whole list of the stupid things he had done that day. The thing that took the cake, however, was when he decided it was a good idea (it was a horrible idea) to throw dynamite all over the floor. It wouldn't have been so bad if the dynamite hadn't been lit...but it was. Really, it only made sense that when the Sky saved him, they clicked.

Just like that. Sure they would get to know each other better later, but he had a feeling that that had been the fastest formed bond ever (it wasn't). He had been totally unprepared for the slew of things that came with being a Guardian, and it didn't help that there was a crow sitting on the fence that he just _knew_ was laughing at him.

He felt like he knew it from somewhere, but it couldn't be. He had left that one all the way back in Italy. There was no way it could be here. Stupid conceited crows! Why did they all have to look the same? Well, at least this one wouldn't talk... (hopefully)

In any case, the feelings he could feel down the newfound bond were incredible. He could feel Tsuna's excitement at having a friend his age, and Tsuna could feel his awe and wonder at finally having something to call his own. The rest of the day passed by in a haze, and when he started to head down the road to the hotel he was staying at, all it took was a look and he was following his Sky.

Later, as he stared at the ceiling of Tsuna's bedroom, he mused on how fast everything had happened. And yet...he wouldn't have it any other way.

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Takeshi's life seemed to revolve around baseball. And now, that was crumbling, and he didn't know what to do. No matter how much he practiced, he seemed to keep getting worse, and nothing he did helped. He knew there were other things out there, other things he was good at, other things he could love. But...he hadn't found any he really wanted to do. Maybe baseball really was the only thing he could do.

And so came about his idea to ask the weakest person he knew for advice. It seemed sound enough, especially considering said person seemed to be happy nowadays. So he waited until after class was over on one of the days he didn't have practice to ask him.

"Hey, Tsunayoshi, right? Can I ask you a question?"

Tsunayoshi stiffened as Takeshi called for him. He turned around, and seemed to relax when he saw the friendly smile and the unthreatening stance. Gokudera, standing beside him, scowled. He just wanted to go home (when did it become that?), but no, this idiot had to stop them. Tsuna glanced at Hayato and grinned, "Yeah, sure. Can we walk and talk?"

Something about the way Tsuna smiled made him relax. It was the strangest thing, but it felt like they had known each other for years. The three of them easily fell into step together, too easy. And yet, none of them minded. The sense of companionship was so comfortable that he almost forgot about his woes. When he finally decided to speak, it all came tumbling out in a rush.

"I practice, and I practice, but I never seem to get better. If anything, I seem to get worse. Nothing I do makes it better. I don't know what to do anymore. If I lose baseball..." His voice trailed off, and the lack of a smile made both others look at him with concern. Tsuna thought about it for a moment, and he knew what he could do. Reborn had explained this to him once, and now he could use it to help someone else, which made him happy.

"Think about it like this. You know how everyone walks all the time, and we're all really 'good' at it? What happens when you walk too long and too hard? We stumble. If you do anything too many times in a row, then your muscles get tired. So, try this. Don't practice at all until you're with your team, and once you start getting better again, make sure you don't push yourself. That's another thing that could be giving you problems.

"If you do the same motion over and over again, it can cause problems in the joints and become extremely painful." At Takeshi's guilty look, Tsuna frowned, "Your arms been hurting, hasn't it? Then stop that. Give yourself time to recover. In fact, since I can't be sure you'll actually rest, you are spending tomorrow with me. No baseball for you until you're better."

Hope sparked in Takeshi's chest. How had this person he had just met seen through him easier than even his own father? A real smile slid onto his face, and he nodded in agreement. A moment later, Tsuna's brain seemed to catch up to his mouth, and he blushed a bright red and began to stutter out an apology. Takeshi laughed, and found that once he started it was hard to stop. Gokudera snapped an insult at Takeshi, who laughed it off, and then they began to bicker.

This was such a ridiculous situation. None of them minded though. They knew that they could fight all they liked, and when the time came, they would have each others' backs. Takeshi crossed his arms behind his head. It was a strange feeling, but he liked it.

He remembered the day before, where he had seriously considered jumping. Now, those thoughts seemed silly. He had the feeling that if either of the two beside him knew he had thought like that, they would smack it out of his head before he could say 'ite!'.

It was good to have friends, but it was even better to have family.

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Lambo was starting to regret coming to Japan. He really was. He didn't know anyone here, and even if the people were shorter than he was used to, they still towered over him like giants. He couldn't read any of the signs, and people were always asking him where his parents were, which only served to remind him of why he was there in the first place.

The Bovino Family had decided that he needed to make himself useful, and what better way to get his name out there than have him perform an impossible task like killing the "World's Strongest Hitman", never mind the fact that he was only five years old and was still having difficulty holding his various weapons. He knew that it was still extremely easy to make him cry, and he'd been planning to use that to help him get close to Reborn.

So he'd set himself up by the school that the hitman's charge went to, and when he spotted them, he ran and made himself trip, skinning his knee in the process. Cue the waterworks, he thought. They would never expect a child like himself to be a hitman. The short one with the fluffy hair ran up to him, concern clear on his face, and knelt down beside him.

"Hey, are you hurt?" Fluffy-Hair's voice was soft and warm, and it made him want to curl up beside him and sleep for a year. No! Bad Lambo, he thought, you're supposed to be a hitman, not an injured child! But...Fluffy-Hair was so warm. And then Fluffy-Hair's arms were wrapped around him, picking him up. He froze.

He didn't know what to do. He'd never been held before, not that he could remember. Fluffy-Hair continued to mutter soothing nonsense in his ear as he cried. He didn't know what he was crying for anymore. Was he a hitman? Was he a child searching for comfort? He...didn't know, and somehow, that made him feel worse than when he was thrown out by his Family.

So he snuggled into the warmth that was being offered and cried. He cried for not knowing, he cried for being thrown out, he cried for learning to dispose of bodies too young, and as he cried, something inside him seemed to reach out to Fluffy-Hair, and then that warmth was spreading throughout his whole body, relaxing muscles he hadn't even known were tense.

And when it was over, when he had cried all his tears out, he slept a sleep that was free of the nightmares that came with being forced to kill people. And all throughout his dreams of grape candy and pink bazookas, the warmth stayed, comforting him in a way that nothing else ever had.

Maybe coming to Japan wasn't such a bad idea after all.

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Kyoya wasn't sure when it started. Whatever 'it' was.

He just knew that something about the small, pale herbivore seemed off. He was weak, and yet so many others seemed to follow him around. It was as if he were the leader of his pack.

So he followed the not-quite-right-pack up to the roof, where they proceeded to pull out lunch bentos and eat. He'd been doing this for the past few days, and none of them had noticed him, so it surprised him when the not-herbivore set a second bento to the side, away from everyone else, and pointed first at him, and then at the bento.

None of the rest of them acknowledged the gesture, so he slowly prowled forward, like a cat stalking it's prey, and grabbed the bento. Due to his preoccupation with figuring out the not-herbivore, he had forgotten to eat lunch for the past several days. Which appeared to have resulted in the not-herbivore bringing him food.

As the gracious predator he was, he would accept this tribute to his rule. He opened the bento, inhaling the smell of meat that was cooked just right. It seemed the not-herbivore had somehow realized he liked meat. Well, that suited him just fine. He dug in, and within moments the food was gone and his hunger was sated.

He stretched out on the roof, in full view of the sun, for an after-meal nap. None of not-quite-right-pack bothered him, and when he woke up they were all gone, presumably to classes. No words had been said, but it seemed that the caretaker (that was what the not-herbivore was) of the pack had adopted him into their heirarchy.

So he experimented. The next day, he didn't go to the roof for lunch. When he went up later to make sure that they had gone to classes, a bento that looked almost exactly like the one he had had yesterday was waiting. He ate it happily and took a nap.

The next day, he took the bento box back to the caretaker and was given food in return. He took a nap afterwards.

And so continued the cycle of him testing the boundaries of his freedom within his newfound pack, sometimes waiting a week or more before he came back. He discovered that as long as he was willing to come back, there would be a place for him. If he wanted to talk, he could start a conversation. If he felt like not saying anything, he could just listen.

He was part of a pack, but he felt freer than he ever had before. He'd finally found his place, all due to a caretaker who was wiling to risk his ire to ensure he took care of himself.

He wasn't sure when 'it' started, but he found that it didn't matter when he was stretched out, food coma starting to set in, voices all around him not trying to force him into the conversation.

He liked it. He would make sure that it stayed.

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Ryohei had heard about Tsunayoshi Sawada before. According to his sister, Tsunayoshi was a sweet boy who would never hurt a fly. Recently, his sister had more stories about him, so naturally, Ryohei's curiosity was extremely peeked.

He'd been intending to 'run into him' at school, and see what he could find out from that. If the boy was sincerely nice, then he would leave him be. If the boy was just stringing Kyoko along... Well, there was a reason he was in boxing.

So when he spotted him while he was on his morning run, it was an extremely perfect chance to talk! Except that when he ran up beside him and asked for his name, the boy looked at him like he was insane. Didn't people normally talk during morning runs?

Ryohei continued to run beside the extreme boy, and eventually the other huffed out his name. So he was Tsunayoshi. At least he now knew what he looked like.

The next morning, he ran the same extreme route, and sure enough, he ended up running with Tsunayoshi 'call me Tsuna' Sawada. He pulled up beside Tsuna, mildly puzzled when Tsuna dipped his head with an extreme puff of air. He asked questions, eventually getting answers in between huffs. This continued for the next week, until Tsuna finally asked for his name.

He told him, watching the extreme shock that passed across Tsuna's face. A few moments later, Tsuna invited him to spend the day with him. Apparently, they were going to play an extreme game, and they needed another person. Sounded like fun! (It was).

And they kept meeting on their morning runs, and eventually Tsuna progressed to the point that he and Ryohei could talk while they ran. They only really started to click, however, when Tsuna invited him to join their group for lunch. He extremely agreed, and despite the fact that he was expecting more resistance from the rest, they all accepted him the moment Tsuna introduced him.

It was strange being accepted so quickly. Normally, his extreme quirks made people back off until they got used to him, but with this group, they just ignored it right off the bat, like it was all normal. He thought that maybe he was starting to understand why his sister spent so much time with these people.

In fact, he might have to keep having lunch with them. He gets to keep an eye on Kyoko, and he gets to have fun with friends. Extreme win-win!

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Harry face-palmed (face-winged? How does that even work for birds?). Somehow, in the two days (two days!) that he was gone to check on Hermione and the twins, Tsuna had managed to collect seven more people. Seven. He was both impressed and terrified. What would happen if he left them for longer?

You'd think that with him having left Reborn with Tsuna, things like this wouldn't happen, and if they did that they would happen at a more reasonable pace.

But no. Reborn liked to _encourage_ these kinds of things, because he found Harry's reactions funny. Harry was starting to feel like collecting people was a Sky thing. He did it, with house elves and magical creatures, and other Skies. Tsuna did it, with everyone he met. Xanxus did it, bringing people into the Varia and not letting them leave.

Well, at least Tsuna had managed to find two more of his Guardians. The little cow child was cute, if occasionally annoying, and, despite how young he was, he seemed to have a decent grasp of sneaking and fighting, and the boxer was 'extremely' enthusiastic about everything. If Harry could just get someone to teach them how to utilize their skills... He didn't have much to say about the panther-Cloud.

But still, wasn't this a little ridiculous? Seven people over a span of two days? Really? Though, he was somewhat concerned about Gokudera. From what Reborn had told him, the kid's sister (Bianchi?) had forced him to eat her 'poison cooking' before every piano performance. It was no wonder that not only was Gokudera's stomach lining extremely weak, but he hated piano now too. Such a shame, really.

He did commend Tsuna on saving Fuuta though. The ranking kid could be a valuable ally in the future, and it was always good to give kids a sanctuary. He was also pleased that Tsuna had ended up helping I-pin out. Though...it would have been nice to have more warning that Fon was sending his student over. As it was, they were just lucky that the little one hadn't blown anything up yet.

At least they knew that Tsuna was a powerful Sky. That was one upside to his collecting.

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 **I hope y'all enjoyed! Huge thanks to MisteriosaSaky and kurosakiami02 for helping me with this chapter! Thanks to everyone who reviewed, it means a lot! I'M ALMOST AT 50 REVIEWS! For my first story, this is huge! Thanks so much everyone!**

 **Kyoya's part is dedicated to MisteriosaSaky, because she likes him and she helps a lot! The extra is dedicated to my other Beta person, kurosakiami, who helped so much with my minor writer's block on this chapter!**

 **EDIT: SilverStarWaters pointed out that using days and week in Kyoya's part (I did it with Ryohei too) implies that Harry is gone longer than two days. He's not. There is a reason for this, and it will be stated in the next chapter.**

 **I thank them for pointing this out though, because I had forgotten I did that. It is also very easy for me to miss things like that, so it helps to have people point them out (my betas missed it too). If you see any discrepancies, please point them out! It could have a reason (like this), or it could have been me being oblivious. Either way, it doesn't hurt to point things out.**

 **Thanks! Remember, there is a reason! I said Reborn likes encouraging things, right?**


	9. Harry the Crow Act II Part IV

**A/n: I... am so sorry. I have been super busy (musician's life...), and sooo braindead. This is a lot shorter than normal, and I really wanted it to be longer, but I just needed to post something so I could stop worrying about it. Here ya go.**

 **Disclaimer: look at previous chapters.**

Damn. He was too late. The resident Cloud had already eaten his lunch. He hung his head. Reborn just loved to make his life harder, didn't he?

First it was Reborn hiding the fact that Tsuna was meeting up with his Sun on his morning runs, and then the he was somehow hiding the fact that Tsuna was bringing a second lunch with him for the Cloud (what was his name?).

And now, Reborn had gone and done it again. He'd somehow gotten into the stores of potions that were back in Black Manor, found a temporary animagus potion, and put it in the Cloud's (Koga? Kyosa? Kyoya!) lunch. Which Kyoya had then eaten.

And now they were going to see the effects of it in about - he checked his non-existent watch - five minutes. At least it would be interesting. He was betting on the kid being some kind of big cat. Maybe a lion? No, he preferred hunting himself.

He kept checking his non-existent watch until the teenage Cloud grew pale. Well, paler than he already was (which made no sense. As far as he could tell, the kid spent a lot of time in the sun, yet he still looked like never went outside. Maybe it was his Flames?). Black fur sprouted all over his body, his hair shortening to match.

His face elongated, changing to the distinct shape of a cat's muzzle (he knew it! Ha!). He dropped to all fours and a tail popped out of his spine. In just a few seconds, where there once was a teenager, there was now a panther.

Harry flew off his perch and settled on Tsuna's shoulder, whispering in his ear, "Don't worry, it'll only last fifteen minutes. As long as you stay here with him, he should be fine."

Tsuna, who had backed away with the others when the change happened, nodded. "Alright. There won't be any side-effects, will there?" He didn't whisper, there was no need. His Guardians were making too much noise to pay attention to them. (The Storm was trying to get closer, shouting "UMA! UMA!" while the Sun restrained him and the Rain laughed heartily.)

"Nope," said Harry. He thought for a moment and then corrected himself. "Well, not unless you count him being even more catlike afterwards..."

"Harry!"

"Not my fault! Reborn did it! Not me!"

"He's your Guardian!"

"That doesn't mean I can control him!" Tsuna gave him a look that said 'You can control him. You just find this as amusing as he does.' "No. Don't give me that look. Stop it. Stop what you're doing right now."

"Stop what? Looking at you? Arguing with you?"

"Exactly!"

They stared at each other for a moment and then burst out laughing. A moment later, Harry sqawked and fell off Tsuna's shoulder. Kyoya's head had just appeared in front of him, and Harry did not like the look in his eyes.

"Don't you dare. Don't even think about it. No, no no no no-"

He was cut off as Kyoya lunged at him, fully intent on catching him. Damn it, Reborn! This is all your fault! We should have cut you off from potions access years ago!  
Damn it!

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Mukuro eyed the strange ongoings. An intelligent crow being chased by a panther who was a boy. Even to him this was strange. Sure, he had seen similar things in some of his other reincarnations, but none of them had been in the human world.

He paid special attention to the crow. Something seemed off about it. He almost felt like he had seen it before. Was it possible it was one of the crows from the Animal Path?

And what about the panther? Was it a shapeshifter from one of the other worlds? Or perhaps there was something different about this world...

He shrugged. Well, it was more appropriate to say he attempted a shrug. A bird's shoulders weren't exactly made for shrugging, even if a human was possessing it. It was time to return to his body.

He would have to leave the mystery of the panther-boy until later. He checked the name of the school. Namimori High School. He'd keep that in mind.

He took one last long look, and left. He would be back.


	10. Tsuna Meets Mukuro

**A/n: Hello, my lovely Dragons! I'm not dead! I have the end of this story planned out now, so I know where it's going now! Yay! I hope y'all enjoy this chapter, as I'm aware that the last one I posted was sub-par. Here ya go!**

 **A huge thank you to everyone who reviewed, especially the guest who reviewed three chaps in one go!**

Everything was happening so fast. Just a few weeks ago he had had only himself to rely on. Now he had Hibari, Gokudera, Yamamoto, Lambo, and Ryohei. And they were _his_. Just his.

On one hand, he disliked the thought of people being bound to him for eternity, but on the other, he found himself getting possessive whenever other people got close to them. And then there was what had been happening lately.

Hibari hadn't been showing up to lunch very often, which was concerning. After Tsuna had felt their bond 'click' into place, Hibari had shown up to lunch everyday without fail. Except for the past two days. The only reason they hadn't dragged him back was because they couldn't feel anything bad (pain, anger, fear, etc) over the bond.

They had discussed what to do about it, and decided to do nothing unless the situation changed and something happened to Hibari. This was seeming more and more likely as members of the Disciplinary Community kept showing up injured. He had asked Harry about it, but all he said was 'I can't help with this unless it gets out of hand.'

Reborn had said much the same. So they were left to figure it out on their own. He sighed as he set down the bento he had brought for Hibari. Still no sign of the panther. Well, not-so-panther now.

And then, everything froze for just a second as a bolt of pain shot down the Guardian bonds. Anger followed soon after, a contrast to Hibari's normally cool countenance, and they all (everyone who was there, which meant all the Guardians but Lambo) scrambled to their feet as they searched for the threat. An image of a teen who was around their age flashed into their mind before the bond went dark.

Tsuna's mouth firmed into a thin line. A bond had never gone dark before, so he was guessing that Hibari was either unconscious, or something equally bad had happened. Either way, they needed to find him. He turned to his Guardians, all traces of the laughing and joking that had been going on gone. "We're going to find Hibari. Ready?"

A chorus of shouts went up, and they sped off the roof, down the stairs, and out of the school building. Hibari, if he were there, would have threatened to bite them all to death for running in the halls, but he wasn't, so he didn't.

And that was exactly why they were going to find him.

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When Tsuna first saw Rokudo Mukuro, the _real_ Rokudo Mukuro, he saw someone who was loyal to a fault, someone who would do anything for the people he cared for, even if he didn't let them know it. Once he saw that, everything became clear. The murder of the Estraneo that the thugs outside had been talking about, all the theft, the breaking out of the strongest prison, everything had been for his friends.

Even this was for his friends. He was trying to make sure that anyone who would know about them and their stint in prison was indisposed and unable to throw them back there. And Tsuna felt his Flames reaching out to the tired (Mukuro felt so tired, like he just couldn't rest) soul in front of him.

Then their Flames touched, and Tsuna saw everything. He saw what the Estraneo Family did, taking a soul that was ready to rest, a soul that had already gone through all it's lives, and then shoving it into a new body. He saw every past life he had gone through, just flashes, but he still saw them, and even that much was too much for him to process.

And Mukuro saw everything that had happened. He saw Tsuna's binding, the subsequent troubles that he went through, and then him being saved by Harry and Reborn. He saw Tsuna meeting him, Rokudo Mukuro, saw his first impressions, saw himself through another's eyes.

Then they were both overwhelmed by their minds crashing together, and the effect rippled through the bonds connecting Tsuna to his other Guardians. Each and every one of them dropped like puppets cut from their strings. Darkness greeted them, broken only by seven flickering Flames.

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Mukuro looked around in this strange darkness, and reached forward to poke at the indigo Flame hovering in front of him. He did so, and it felt like he was poking himself. He poked it again, wondering at the strange feeling. He moved to the side to poke at the yellow Flame hovering to the left of him in the circle of light, and the orange Flame poked back.

Then he poked the blue Flame to his right, and it poked back too. He occupied himself with this for a minute, and only really started paying attention when the Flames started to look like people. They were looking at him, every single one of them, and one was even moving toward him. It looked like Tsuna (he couldn't bring himself to call him Sawada, not when they _knew_ each other), and the figure held out his hand.

He radiated warmth, the kind that only someone who loved you could have. But it wasn't a romantic love, it felt more like the acceptance of a someone who had just found their lost brother and was welcoming him back home. It didn't judge, it didn't say anything but that there was a place for him if he wanted it. The other figures didn't move, didn't say anything, but he knew they were watching.

If he made a step out of line, they would bring him back, show him the ropes, and then give him a chance. Maybe it was that feeling that he could be himself, sarcastic and bitter as he was, that let him accept the bond. And he was glad he did, even as the sudden rush of emotions and memories dragged all of them into true unconsciousness, not this dream-land that was somewhere in between.

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Mukuro groaned as he swam back to a more awake state. The bed, the sheets, the comforter, it was all unusually soft. He wasn't back with Chikusa and Ken, was he? No, that's right. He had bonded with Tsuna. He raised his heavy eyelids, and stared at the ceiling. The soft buzz in the back of his head was the only sign of his bond being active.

He looked to the side, eyeing the note on the bedside table. Was it worth it to move from the soft warmth to read it? Probably. Oh well, he would have to get up at some point anyway. He sat up and grabbed the note, pulling it open as he moved. Just in case he hadn't guessed it was for him, his name was printed in big friendly letters on the front.

 _Mukuro,_

 _I'm sorry we couldn't be there when you woke up, but we do have school, and we have to figure out how to keep you out of prison. Again. Harry thinks he knows how, but he won't tell us. Also, if you're having trouble with the whole multiple lives thing, you should try talking to the crow in the kitchen. It will help._

 _Tsuna_

The crow in the kitchen? Was that some kind of code? Well, there was no harm in making sure that he wasn't being literal. Plus, he was getting hungry. This way he would kill two birds with one stone. He snorted at his own internal joke.

He stood up and idly wondered who had changed him. It didn't really matter to him, living several lives tended to ruin your modesty, but the thought of Hibari changing his clothes was amusing. He wandered down the stairs to the area that he assumed was the kitchen, and sure enough. There was a crow. Well, might as well talk to it. (It looked like the crow that got chased by the panther)

"So, you're the crow in the kitchen. I wasn't really expecting that to be literal, but then again, who knows. This world is strange. Stranger than any of the ones I've been in before. You wouldn't happen to know the cause of that, would you Mister Crow?"

"Nope, not a clue." The crow turned toward him with a sunny grin (how did that come across on a crow? It made no sense) and hopped over. "You wouldn't happen to be having trouble with having had multiples lives, are you? I happen to have some experience on that subject, and I've seen somethings over the years. I can help you."

"A crow? Help me? Ha!" Mukuro gave a short barking laugh, "How could you help me? I was on my way to finally be at rest when they pulled me into a new body, one that already had a soul. Do you know what happened to that boy? Do you? I crushed him. I crushed his soul. He'll never see the sunlight, never know what it's like to have a family. He'll never love anyone. I crushed him. I crushed him!"

Mukuro burst into insane laughter that was tinged with hysteria. The crow hopped onto his shoulder and nudged his cheek with it's beak. "You know, his soul is fine. It got taken to purgatory, and is in the line to get another shot at life. You didn't crush him. He's fine. He met his mom for a bit, and his dad. They are all fine. None of it was your fault. I asked him, and he said he didn't blame you. You didn't choose to be put into his body. He said he wants you to live his life for him, to be happy. That will be your way of repaying him. Understand?"

The boy who's life he took...didn't blame him? Why? He killed him, sent him to another life, why wouldn't he blame him? But...but if he could repay the boy for taking his life by living...then maybe he should. He could have a family, he could have a life, he could...be happy.

"You are having issues with the constant bombardment of memories, right? I can help with that. Once a week, you will meet with me, and I will teach you how to create a barrier between your previous lives and your current one." The crow raised his wing as if he was checking a watch. "Starting...now. Today, we'll be doing meditation," said the crow, an evil grin (again, crows and expressions?) spreading across his face.

Mukuro felt a chill run up his spine, just like the first time he had encountered Death (and Death's Chair. Death was very possessive over that chair). It also reminded him of France. France...was something that he didn't want to remember...

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Harry groaned as he perched on a tree. Helping Mukuro (or, as he knew him, Umbra) sort through the onslaught of memories had brought his own memories rushing back. Mukuro's childhood had reminded him far too much of his own time spent with the Dursleys. After Umbra's stint helping Death, he had been looking forward to resting, only to be pulled into a new body.

It really was too bad. Umbra had been Death's favorite helper. He made sure everything got done on time, even if he had to do it himself, and he had a spectacular imagination that he used to motivate all his underlings. Death had liked him enough that he gave him his own Chair. They had all been sad when he went missing.

And then Harry (Potter luck struck again) just stumbled upon him. Except... Umbra's (no, Mukuro's) mind was shattered, overwhelmed by too many memories all at once. Death had a policy, where if a soul was reborn with it's memories intact, then they would regain them slowly. It was far too easy for someone's mind to crumble underneath the weight of previous lives.

So since Mukuro didn't have the chance to have his memories slowly filtered back to him, instead Harry was helping him build barriers that would function the same. They would slowly weaken over time and let his mind adjust. They would still be there if he actively thought about them, but they would no longer be constantly making him remember.

It was the exact same thing Harry had had to do when he woke up from his retreat into himself. He had had to sort through his memories, which, while unpleasant, had given him the experience to help others. And himself. He still used the same tricks when he wanted to avoid thinking about it. Like the memories of the Dursleys. Those were shoved deep in the back of his mind, because it was in the past, and he didn't want to remember it.

And then there was the fact that Hermione had contacted him and told him that she and Luna were very close to figuring out the Arcobaleno Curse. They just needed to break through the wall that was constantly blocking them from figuring it out, and then they would be home free. Which was good. It really was. He was just...he kept wondering if maybe the Curse wasn't what they thought it was.

Oh well. They'd figure it out. It would help if the Ministry of Magic would stop trying to track his magical signature so he could Apparate again. Part of the reason he wasn't over there helping was because Tsuna and Mukuro both needed help, and it took far too long to fly over to them and back. Which meant he wasn't going to.

And he needed to figure out when they were going to hold the next meeting, so they could all see each other again and reassure themselves that no-one had died yet.

He sighed. So much to do, so little time.

 **P.S. How many people want to know what happened in France?**


	11. Now For Something Completely Different

**A/n: Hello, my lovely Dragons! I have a couple things to say about this chapter. ONE, If any of you are wondering, the recipe for the alcohol is real. It tastes pretty good too. TWO, any and all French in this chapter is supposed to be bad and not make much sense. THREE, I hope you all enjoy what happened in France, and if you have any questions about my reasoning for why this is the way it is, then PM me and I will do my best to explain.**

 **Also, I apologize for any spelling/grammar mistakes. I just had a minor operation on my arm where they had to numb it. Please tell me if you see any so I can fix them.**

 **Enjoy!**

Harry grinned in excitement. Finally, the 40 days were up. He would finally be able to see, smell, /drink/ the fruits of his labor. It had taken him days to pick the génépi flowers for the alcohol recipe he'd found, since there was a ten stalk per person per day limit by local law. It had, surprisingly enough, been in the Black Manor Library, in one of the grimoires. He had had to find 40 proof yellow plum brandy, and then soak 40 stalks of génépi and 40 sugar cubes in it for 40 days. Then it would be ready.

As a result of having to pick the flowers in the mountains of France (the only place in the world that they grew), he had decided that the whole operation would be done in France. Although, he was really only doing this for the taste, not for the alcohol. He hadn't been able to get drunk since he had become the Master of Death, because that apparently meant that such things as the effects of alcohol and drugs were shared between them, and it took a lot to affect Death.

He opened a bottle and took a whiff. Mmmm, it smelled sweetly floral, almost like a perfume. He took a sip, and then a larger sip. He looked around to check on the other bottles, absently noting that the room was looking a bit fuzzy. Maybe it had grown fur...fur was soft, so maybe the walls were soft. He leaned against one and verified that no, walls were not soft. It was too bad, because they were getting fuzzier by the second.

He felt a tug on his bond with Death, and pulled back, accidentally summoning Death to his side. Death stumbled as he popped into existence beside Harry. Harry laughed and held out a tall clear glass bottle of the génépi to him. Death took a sip, and then a longer sip. Pretty soon he and Harry were laughing as they bumped bottles and drank. They were only buzzed. That was as far as they were going to go.

And then they got drunk.

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Reborn was used to seeing weird things, he lived with a talking crow after all, but this took the cake. Death was floating in midair and very carefully taking his clothing off and folding it into neat piles that crumpled into messy lumps as they hit the floor. Harry was sitting in the corner snickering to himself and chuckling aloud every once in a while, like someone had just told him the funniest joke in the world. He glanced at Umbra, who appeared to be in the same position as him. Their bosses were drunk, and showed no signs of being sober any time soon.

Death looked up at them as they approached, and then motioned for them to float up to him. Which was physically impossible. For both Reborn _and_ Umbra (in his current form, that is). They shared a glance again. This would be a long night, and it was only just starting.

They sat on the grassy ground and resolved to make sure that Harry and Death didn't cause any major accidents. Like tsunamis, or earthquakes, or walking forests. It was unlikely, but the two of them had never been drunk before, so there was no telling what might happen.

Still, they weren't prepared for when the strangeness started. Harry had finally noticed that Death was stripping. He promptly stopped laughing, stood up, and stalked over to Death. He grabbed what was left of Death's clothes and said, "No, no no no. This not the place to be doing that. Stripping is for... uh...bathrooms! Yeah! And...and bedrooms! And nude beaches, for all I know!"

Death paused, appeared to think it over, and nodded. "I have no bathroom, I have no bedroom, so therefore, we must go to this... this nude beach." Death's words were not slurred, in fact, the more he drank, the more articulate he was. Harry, on the other hand, just talked faster.

Harry nodded so enthusiastically that he nearly fell over and said, "That is the best idea I've heard all day! Allon-something!"

Reborn and Umbra sighed in unison. What the hell had they gotten themselves into?

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Sometimes Umbra really regretted agreeing to be one of Death's helpers. Sure, most of the time it was fun and he got to motivate (torture) his minions with illusions, but things like this just cancelled all of that out in one swell foop.

He watched with utter disdain as Harry (he refused to let them call him Potter) raced towards the ocean, flinging clothes off as he went. It was a very good thing that he had cast a subtle Notice-Me-Not charm over all four of them, because Harry had somehow managed to sprout wings out of his shoulders, and had gotten stuck somewhere between human and crow.

Death was slowly following behind him, folding all discarded clothing into neat piles, which meant that instead of a fairly straight line of crumpled clothing leading to the ocean, there was a meandering line of neat clothing piles.

Umbra glanced out to the water to make sure Harry wasn't drowning, and was met with the sight of a nude Harry Potter standing on the water's surface yelling "This water is freaking cold!" and "Here, fishy, fishy, fishy...". Potter luck struck again. Harry had managed to finally find the / _one/_ substance in the entire world that could get them drunk. Génépi.

Meanwhile, Death had finished folding the clothing and apparently didn't feel like going swimming. He waved Harry back to the shore and motioned further up the beach where there was a volleyball net. He said something, Umbra was too far to hear, and Harry nodded. They both took off at a run towards the volleyball net, bare cheeks (and other bits) bouncing, and Umbra was once again thankful that Notice-Me-Not charms worked as well as they did. Especially when Harry's wings just suddenly disappeared.

Umbra motioned for Reborn to watch over the clothing and other items strewn across the sand, and went to go 'supervise' the pair of drunkards. When he got there, they were discussing what to use as a volleyball. And then Death had an Idea.

See, the reason most people think of demons as short red people with horns and a tail is because a long time ago, a demon, who just so happened to like that form, went around and convinced so many humans that that was what demons look like, that it just became "common knowledge." See, demons are shape-shifters. When in hell, they take a form of their own choosing, one that is comfortable for them.

However, when a demon is summoned to Earth, he takes the form of whatever the summoner is visualizing, which meant that for the past thousand-or-so years, all that the summoners had been expecting/wanting was short red people with horns and tails.

And then Death got drunk and had an Idea.

Death motioned toward the ground as he and Harry finished their conversation. He did the quickest summoning ritual ever (he was Death after all), and a dark pillar appeared for a moment, the signifier of a demon summoning, before lowering like a curtain. When Umbra saw what form Death had summoned the demons as, all he could do was laugh.

The first time in a thousand years that they get summoned as something other than the stereotypical demon, and they get summoned as miniature demon sheep. Miniature demon sheep! They were volleyball sized fluffy sheep with red horns and demon tails, as well as the red eyes that demons keep, no matter their form. Ha! Miniature demon sheep!

And then Harry picked one up, the sheep frantically bleating, and he and Death moved to either side of the volleyball net after they summoned a fence to keep the 'volleyballs' from running away. Harry shouted, "We're serving sheep! Tu vas quelque part!" and tossed the demon sheep into the air and batted it to Death's side.

Death bounced it back even as he said, "Serving sheep? We're eating them? You can't do that, they're _mine_! And I want to toss them around like little hackey sacks!"

This went on for a while, until finally the sheep hit the ground, and bounced high into the air before exploding into large amounts of brightly colored confetti. Umbra watched, mouth agape, as the confetti hit the sand and melted into sand that was just as brightly colored as the confetti. It looked like one of those Sand Mandala things some monks made.

He quickly conjured stones in a ring around the area where Death and Harry were playing. He attached a ward to said stones that would prevent any exploding sheep, the resulting confetti, or other magic related things to leave the circle made by them. Well, that was one disaster averted.

Harry and Death quickly ran out of sheep, and then Death spotted him. Death waved at him, and the next moment he was short and fluffy. Fuck. He ran. He had no desire to be treated as a Miniature Bouncing Sheep of Exploding Confetti. So he ran until Death and Harry lost interest in him (five minutes was all it took), and then he found Reborn.

He changed back to his human form and held his hand out. Reborn silently gave him a bottle of génépi, and they clanked bottles together and drank.

He did not want to remember this. Too bad demons didn't forget things...

Line-Break

Reborn took another sip of génépi, Umbra doing the same next to him. How did things get to this point?

Oh, that's right, Death and Harry had decided that after their impromptu volleyball game, they needed to wash off all the bright colored sand and stinky sweat. So Death decided that since they needed to be rinsed off, he would just call down rain. Why, oh why, did Death have the ability to call down rain?

Reborn wasn't sure that anyone knew the answer to that question. But, the rain had resulted in keeping Death and Harry occupied, at least for a half hour as they cavorted in the puddles. They were currently in a contest to see which one of them could spot the most recognizable shapes in the clouds. Harry was winning. Death took offense to that, and waved at the stormy clouds above them.

One moment Harry was crowing about how he had spotted a perfect bunny cloud, the next thing they knew the bunny cloud was eaten by a giant crocodile cloud. Harry retaliated by sending a snake cloud at the crocodile, and somehow managed to strangle the crocodile cloud until it burst into small, gerbil shaped clouds that scurried to the south in a sudden wind. Death retaliated with a phoenix cloud, including some flaming cloud streamers, to which Harry sent a basilisk.

Soon the entire sky was filled with dark storm clouds, spanning as far as the eye could see. The rain was pouring, and the beach was slowly being washed into the ever growing waves of the ocean. And still, they continued creating clouds. More, and more clouds by the second.

Reborn was more than ready to stop this silliness and go back to the Manor, but Harry was dead-set on winning against Death. And so more clouds were created, and joined in the darkening sky.

It was like a crusade of clouds that was determined that France would not be allowed to see the sun for as long as Death was drunk.

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The next mornings headline read, "Freak Storm Floods Entire Region of France."

 **P.S. The flooding is minor. Does anyone want to see the Miniature Bouncing Demon Sheep of Exploding Confetti come back? It would probably be in an extra or something, like the Octo-Nut story.**


	12. And Now for the Ring Battles (Maybe)

**A/n: Hello, my lovely Dragons! I'm very sorry about the break, but please note that updates may be irregular. This chapter takes place after the Ring Battles, because we know those and I'm not rehashing what we already know. As a treat, this update gets two extras! Two! I"ve really impressed myself. Please enjoy!**

Tsuna sat up from his soft, warm bed and groaned. His whole body ached from the fight with Xanxus. What a week it had been. Tsuna was really starting to feel the need for a break again. Maybe he would get Harry to go with him after he gets back. He blinked blurry eyes and stared out the window. Ah, it was so peaceful... When would Harry get back?

Tsuna turned to the calendar on the wall. Oh, that's right, he would get back today. He turned back to the window and stared at it for a long moment before jerking back as baleful eyes watched him. Harry hopped into the room, and continued staring at Tsuna. "Tsuna, why do your Flames have traces of Xanxus' Flames?"

Tsuna paled, "Umm, well, you see..." He turned to look anywhere but that unblinking gaze, "He came to Namimori so he could challenge me for the Vongola rings?'

"Was that a question?" Harry inquired, inching closer. "Because if it was, then the answer is probably yes. If it wasn't, then that means I have some heads to bash. I have a good idea of who would put Xanxus up to something like that."

"Uh...Ummm..." Tsuna backed away, and Harry followed him. "It was a statement?" Harry gave an inquiring look, and Tsuna realized there was no way to get out of it. He had to throw someone to the crows in order to satisfy Harry. "It was all Nono's fault! He's still here in Japan, and he's leaving tomorrow!"

Harry stilled, and then growled, showing far more teeth than a crow should have. "Timoteo, huh... We'll just see what he thinks he's doing." Harry hop-stalked to the window and then paused. "Hey, Tsuna. Do you know if Xanxus has had any alone time recently?"

Tsuna thought for a moment, recalled the way Xanxus' Set stuck to him like glue, and made his decision. "I don't think so. I think his Set has been so worried about possible side-effects that they're afraid to leave him by himself. If you're looking for him, Reborn set up a meeting with him later, I think he said it was to get the pecking order right, or something like that."

"That's not good. If he seemed extremely aggressive and hotheaded, that would be why." Harry shook himself, and let loose with a dark cackle, "But since you have a meeting with him later... That means I can go after Timoteo first. Oh, Timoteo, you better be prepared. I warned you what would happen. I warned you."

Tsuna shivered, and wondered if it was a good idea to tell Harry after all. Well, it wasn't like there was anything he could do now. He just hoped they all managed to survive the storm that was Harry.

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Harry flounced right onto the table right in front of where Timoteo was sitting. He was angry. Not quite to the point of being pushed to the breaking point, but still angry. Timoteo was an old fool who did all the wrong things for the right reasons. Part of the reason Harry was so upset was that he understood why Timoteo did what he did. However, just because he understood didn't mean he agreed.

He sighed. His day had been going so well. He'd just gotten back from his week-and-a-half long trip to the Manor, where he met up with Luna and Hermione. They had had a massive breakthrough on the Arcobaleno Curse. It turned out that his feeling was right, that them being babies wasn't a part of the Curse. No, the real Curse was that they were immortal.

Oh, they could still die, but it was very difficult. Luna and Hermione had a theory on why they were babies, but nothing was concrete yet. Hermione had asked him to arrange for him to come up here so she could see the differences between several different Skies. It wasn't a lot, but it had broken through the stalemate of research and mystery.

"Corvo, what are you doing here?" Timoteo, for all that he supposedly wasn't expecting him, didn't look surprised at all.

"You know exactly why I'm here, Timoteo. What made you think I wouldn't find out about this stunt you pulled? What made you think you could lie to Xanxus, let him believe he could become the Decimo? What made you think it was a good idea to give Tsuna the Vongola rings? He's a child! You know that, and you're still pushing more and more responsibility on him."

"He can handle it! If he's going to be the Boss of the Vongola, he should be capable of handling it! This is what's best for the Family, Harry, surely you understand that! And as for Xanxus, I was only protecting him, doing what was best for him! He should never have found out," defended Timoteo.

"But he did! And you should have been the one to tell him! You have several years to go before you die, Timoteo. If you're going to make the boy Decimo, then I'm going to make sure you do it right. You have no right to expose him to all of this when he's only barely adjusted to the fact that he's even training to be the boss. You have no right!" Harry hissed, gesturing with his wings for emphasis.

Timoteo stared at him for a moment, and then an empty sadness filled his eyes. He looked older than he should. "You're correct, I have no right. I think...I think I forgot that Tsunayoshi is a child. I was too caught up in the bigger picture to notice. Intellectually, I knew, but somehow it just didn't register." He sighed and leaned back in his chair. "I think it would be good if you took over his training. You see the bigger picture while not losing sight of the people themselves."

Harry considered it. It was a good opportunity. He would have a better excuse to stay with Tsuna than just "I'm here because Reborn is an idiot." It would be remarkably similar to what he did for Xanxus (that Timoteo still didn't know about), only without the sneaking around. "I accept. However," Harry leaned forward, "You stay the fuck away from Xanxus and Tsuna. If I find you meddling again, I will not be held responsible for what I do." Harry finished, baring his crow-teeth again.

Timoteo sighed again. "Very well. I suppose that's the least of what I deserve. I highly doubt either of them would want to see me in any case."

Harry was satisfied, if still slightly angry, so on his way out via the window, he may have knocked a few of the priceless vases in the corridor over with his magic. He would be back later to cause some havoc. Just because he took the offer didn't mean he wouldn't have his revenge.

Well, he thought as he flew out the window, that was one conversation down. Now he just needed to find Xanxus.

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When Harry finally found Xanxus about an hour later, the scene he stumbled upon was almost comical. Xanxus had apparently finally snapped. He had his guns out, aiming to disable, no kill, and his Guardians were cowering away from him, looking hilariously betrayed. They should have known what would happen if they were too clingy. Especially since Xanxus was predisposed to violence as the answer.

Harry grinned at the scene and flew down on quiet wings, landing on Xanxus' shoulder just in time to prevent him from maiming one of his Guardians. Xanxus's head whipped around to stare at him, and he stared back. Xanxus lowered his guns with a muttered "clingy bastards, all of them," and sighed. "What the fuck are you doing here, bastard?"

"I happen to know who both my parents are, thank you very much," Harry retorted, relaxing into the familiar conversation, his Flames reaching out to gently stroke Xanxus's ruffled feathers.

"What, were they both just as annoying as you?" Xanxus shot back, one hand petting Harry's head.

Squalo sighed and started herding the rest of Xanxus's Set out of the way. He knew there were only two ways that conversation could end, and he didn't want to be around for either of them. As bad as having to answer the questions of his fellow Guardians was (he did /not/ have the patience for it), being around Corvo and Xanxus when shit got real was far worse.

Harry waited until Squalo and the rest of Xanxus's groupies were out of sight before he released the unholy grin he'd been restraining and said, "So, you know how you always wanted a little brother?"

"No..." Xanxus turned a Suspicious Glare on him, "Harry, what have you done now? Please tell me you didn't pick up another shitty stray again."

"He's not shitty!" Harry wilted under the increased Suspicious Glare. "Really, he's not! He's just... a little shy. That's all."

Xanxus put a hand to his head and sighed, "Who is it this time?"

Harry looked away, shifting on his feet and trying to figure out how to break the news, when Xanxus's eyes widened in realization. "No. You didn't..." Xanxus groaned, "It's the fluffy little Sky, isn't it? He's the one you've picked up? God damn it. I just got finished fighting his Set, and now you want me to make nice with him? I don't do that shit, bastard. I really don't."

"Speaking of the fight..." Harry raised one wing and smacked the back of Xanxus's head, "What the hell were you thinking? I know you knew that you wouldn't be able to put the damn rings on, so what the fuck was the point? Seriously!"

Xanxus laughed a deep gravel laugh that Harry hadn't thought he would hear again, "I just had to make sure that the Vongola Boss wasn't going to be a weak little shit with no regard for his comrades. That's all. I wasn't really trying. Trust me, if I was, this would have turned out very different. As it is, he's weak, but he has potential, and I can see him becoming a good Boss."

"That makes a surprising amount of sense, coming from you. I am impressed. Perhaps spending some time cooling off gave you more brain cells."

"Oi, what the fuck are you saying? Don't you fly off, you bastard bird! I can and will come after you!"

"I'm not flying off! I'm just... going to meet my maker!"

Xanxus facepalmed, "Are you 'pining for the fjords?'"

"Yes, yes I am!"

"Then I suppose I shall have to dispose of you. It wouldn't do to have you looking so ugly during your final moment, now would it?"

"Stay away from me, demon! I will smite you if you come close to me!"

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Tsuna should have known better than to trust that Harry's surprise would be a normal surprise, like cake or sushi or something. Nope. In fact, the surprise looked just as surprised as Tsuna felt. It really didn't help that the surprise was the man who had been trying to kill him just a few days ago. Tsuna could already feel the crow-induced headache coming on. Xanxus looked like he felt the same.

Tsuna decided to hell with it, his life was already weird, why not make it weirder, and stuck his hand out in the strange Italian greeting, "Hello, my name is Tsunayoshi. I'm the person you were trying to kill. Nice to meet you." Tsuna was so proud of himself, there wasn't a single trace of sarcasm in his voice.

Xanxus shook his hand, "My name is Xanxus, I'm the person who tried to kill you. Very nice to meet you." There was a definite edge to his voice that was only enhanced by the Death Glare that he sent to Harry. Tsuna very much agreed with the gesture, and copied the Death Glare. "I knew we would meet at some point, but I thought it would be a couple days after the attempted murder. Harry did not agree."

"Yes," Tsuna replied. "I can see that. I guess we're stuck now, so we might as well get along."

"If by 'get along,' you mean, 'try not to kill each other,' then I am on board with that."

"You know," Harry said, "You two are taking this much better than I thought you would. I expected much more screaming and fighting. A lot more fighting."

Xanxus and Tsuna exchanged a glance, and then turned their identical Death Glares on Harry once more. "We are bonding over our current mutual dislike of you. People do not count as surprises, much less people who tried to kill each other."

"Well," Harry squeaked. "At least you're bonding over something?"

The Death Glare Duo grinned at each other, and immediately set about making Harry's life hell. Later it would set in that enemies were now allies (Tsuna), and that there was absolutely no chance of getting away from having an honorary sibling (Xanxus). At the moment, however, ignoring those things seemed like a brilliant idea.

 **Extra One - Tsuna's Boss Voice (all of this is true)**

"Okay, Tsuna. Today you're going to learn how to speak like a boss."

"What? What do you mean, speak like a boss?"

"You need to project your voice more so that people can actually hear you. Part of that is using your diaphragm to support your lungs and push the air out instead of relying on your vocal chords and throat."

"Umm... okay?"

"Step one! Suck your stomach in and push out."

"What?"

"Suck your stomach in and push out."

"Like this?"

"Exactly! Now when you are speaking, use your stomach muscles to push the air out. It will result in much less stress on your vocal chords, so you can talk longer and speak clearer. It's a win-win situation."

"Awesome!"

"You only have the first part though. When you breathe, breathe through your mouth so it's inaudible. When you inhale, expand your rib cage. You should be able to look in a mirror and have the change be visible. Oh, don't forget to support."

"Sooo... Like this?"

"Better. Now stand up straight, as if you have a string leading from the top of your head to the ceiling. Move your legs shoulder width apart and make sure your knees aren't locked. If you keep them locked, it will prevent oxygen from flowing correctly and you will pass out. So don't do it, okay?"

"Right, passing out is bad. Very bad. No locked knees."

"Well, now you have the basics. I want this to all be habit for you, so if I see you being lax, I will smack you. Also, even if you're not speaking, make sure your stomach muscles are engaged. That is all."

"All...the..time...?"

"Yup. Because if you don't...bad, bad things are going to happen."

 **Extra Two - Harry's Revenge**

For once in his relatively long life, Timoteo was completely and utterly baffled. There were absolutely no words to describe what was happening to his mansion. Well, there were words, he just didn't like them. He disliked those words quite a bit.

Miniature Bouncing Sheep of Exploding Confetti. He assumed that was what the sheep currently doing their very best to ruin his mansion were called, because each and every one of them had a vest on that proclaimed that in large friendly letters, with MBSEC in a smaller, more elegant font underneath. There were even a few sheep who had vests that said "Special MBSEC Ops Commander." Those were the ones directing the chaos.

He sighed in relief as his people (the people he paid to deal with these things) seemed to figure out a way to contain them, and then sobbed in despair as the sheep grew demon wings out of nowhere and flew out of the enclosure and back into the chaos. This continued for hours. They would figure out how to contain the sheep, and then the sheep would escape, normally at the directions of their commanders.

When the sheep finally seemed to be getting tired and he thought it couldn't get any worse, all of the sheep took to the skies, arranged themselves in a pattern, and bombarded the previously untouched yard. When they were finished and there were no more sheep in sight, he sighed in relief. It was finally over.

It was only later, when someone had the bright idea to take a picture of the yard from the roof of the mansion that he realized that remaining confetti that refused to be removed spelled out in large, block letters, "YOU DON'T MESS WITH THE CORVO."


End file.
